CEO Confidence Plummets: Single Market Needed Across Sectors, Including Defense
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International CEO Confidence

CEO Confidence Plummets: Single Market Needed Across Sectors, Including Defense

/ Report

The Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence™ for Europe by the European Roundtable for Industry (ERT) drops further into negative territory in H1 2025. The measure stood at an already bearish 47 six months ago, driven by pessimism about the then-current and forward-looking economic conditions. Now, at 27, the measure is the second-lowest reading in the survey’s five-year history. It stands below the levels seen at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (34) and is only slightly above the all-time low of 24 amid the autumn-2022 energy supply shock due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. However, it is CEOs’ assessment of international developments, rather than what they see internally in Europe, that drives this notable increase in pessimism. CEOs urge European policymakers to advance the integration of the single market, including for the defense sector. In line with the objectives of the European Commission’s ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030 framework, for Europe’s defense industry to deliver on scale and innovation CEOs highlight that more supporting policy groundwork will be needed. Moreover, a strategic European approach to strengthening the defense industry would also benefit Europe’s industrial base more broadly and enable the creation of European Champions in key sectors.

The Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence™ for Europe by the European Roundtable for Industry (ERT) drops further into negative territory in H1 2025. The measure stood at an already bearish 47 six months ago, driven by pessimism about the then-current and forward-looking economic conditions. Now, at 27, the measure is the second-lowest reading in the survey’s five-year history. It stands below the levels seen at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (34) and is only slightly above the all-time low of 24 amid the autumn-2022 energy supply shock due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. However, it is CEOs’ assessment of international developments, rather than what they see internally in Europe, that drives this notable increase in pessimism. CEOs urge European policymakers to advance the integration of the single market, including for the defense sector. In line with the objectives of the European Commission’s ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030 framework, for Europe’s defense industry to deliver on scale and innovation CEOs highlight that more supporting policy groundwork will be needed. Moreover, a strategic European approach to strengthening the defense industry would also benefit Europe’s industrial base more broadly and enable the creation of European Champions in key sectors.

Author

Konstantinos Panitsas

Konstantinos Panitsas Konstantinos Panitsas

Economist
The Conference Board

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