The Middle East chief executive officers (CEOs) remain among the most confident globally, with 88% expecting economic growth to strengthen in their own territories, and an even higher 93% across the GCC (Gulf Co-operation Council), against just 55% internationally, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Despite geopolitical uncertainties and trade tensions, CEOs in the Middle East continue to deploy capital, scale artificial intelligence and expand selectively into new sectors, supported by a strong investment momentum and long-term national transformation agendas, said PwC's 29th Global CEO Survey – Middle East findings, based on insights from more than 300 CEOs across the Middle East region.
"These findings reflect the strong underlying confidence we are seeing across the Middle East. CEOs in the region are resilient and are ready to deploy capital for long-term growth. It is particularly encouraging to see the region rank highly in CEOs’ global investment plans. Supported by national transformation agendas and sustained investment in artificial intelligence, the Middle East is well positioned to compete, adapt and grow,” said Hani Ashkar, Territory senior partner, PwC Middle East.
Finding that the GCC continues to consolidate its position as a global investment hub; the survey ranks Saudi Arabia and the UAE among the top 10 global investment destinations, reinforcing their role as anchor markets for international and intra-regional capital.
The Middle East businesses are also the most active globally when it comes to investing beyond their home markets, with 88% of CEOs planning to invest outside their domestic territories, it said, adding almost three quarters of these investments will stay within the Middle East, signalling deeper regional integration and growing confidence in local value creation.
The CEOs in the Middle East, and even more so in the GCC, report significantly higher application of AI (artificial intelligence) than the global average, it found.
More than a third of Middle East and the GCC leaders report integrating AI directly into their offerings, compared with fewer than one in five globally.
Adoption is strongest in demand generation functions such as sales, marketing, and customer service, where 39% of Middle East CEOs and 43% of the GCC CEOs report extensive AI use. Uptake is also strong across support services, with nearly 40% of Middle East CEOs deploying AI - well above global averages, it said.
As much as 80% of business leaders in the Middle East have also revealed that their culture enables AI adoption, while 70% have a clearly defined AI roadmap, well ahead of global benchmarks. As adoption accelerates, CEOs increasingly recognise the need to strengthen data readiness and governance before attempting to scale AI across the value chain.
The merger and acquisition (M&A) demand remains strong, with 72% of Middle East CEOs planning a major acquisition over the next three years, it said, adding deal activity reflects a growing emphasis on capability-building, as CEOs look to strengthen skills, talent and data to support long-term growth.
