In a change from the October survey, respondents have once again cited the pandemic as a risk to domestic growth more than any other factor, as they have since early 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic remains the most-cited risk to the global economy over the next 12 months, as it has been since WHO declared the outbreak a pandemic in March 2020. Renewed concerns about COVID-19 as an economic threat Nearly two-thirds of respondents expect profits to increase, compared with 74 percent in June and September. Sixty-four percent expect customer demand to increase in the next six months, down from 74 percent in the June survey. Please email us at: expectations for their own companies, too, are still largely positive even after trending downward since the summer. If you would like information about this content we will be happy to work with you. We strive to provide individuals with disabilities equal access to our website.

Sixty-two percent say country conditions are better than they were six months ago, up from 49 percent who said at the end of 2020 that their economies had improved. Respondents’ assessments of their countries’ economies tell a similar story. The current share, 60 percent, is much larger than the 43 percent who reported improved conditions one year ago, though executives’ positivity has tempered since June (Exhibit 1). The year ends with positive sentiments but less optimism than midyearĪ majority of respondents say conditions in the global economy are better than they were six months ago, as has been true throughout 2021. Nearly two-thirds of respondents expect increasing rates in their countries in the first half of 2022-the largest share we’ve seen to date in our surveys. Respondents-particularly those in Latin America and North America-also see inflation as a pressing economic threat, along with rising interest rates. These relatively upbeat outlooks, both for the global economy and for respondents’ countries, come despite a resurgence in concerns about the state of the COVID-19 pandemic: countries across Europe and North America had been reporting rising case numbers since early October, and WHO declared the Omicron variant to be one of concern just days before the survey launched. To adjust for differences in response rates, the data are weighted by the contribution of each respondent’s nation to global GDP. The online survey was in the field from November 29 to December 3, 2021, and garnered responses from 955 participants representing the full range of regions, industries, company sizes, functional specialties, and tenures.

Respondents to the latest McKinsey Global Survey on the economy end a largely optimistic year with mostly positive assessments of current conditions as well as expectations for 2022.

Health impacts of globalization