KPMG report: 86% of Chinese CEOs are confident their companies will grow in the next three years

The Zhitong Finance App learned that KPMG released the “2026 China CEO Outlook” report. According to the report, 86% of Chinese CEOs have confidence in corporate growth in the next three years, up 8 percentage points from last year, a record high since 2020; 74% expect an average annual increase of no less than 2.5% in corporate revenue over the next three years, an increase of 19 percentage points over last year. Compared with last year's macroeconomic confidence was higher than the companies' own growth confidence, this year's companies' own growth confidence overtook macroeconomic confidence, reflecting that enterprises are paying more attention to seizing growth opportunities through innovation, strategic adjustment, and execution capabilities.

The report integrates global research results from August to September 2026, gathers important insights from 1,400 global CEOs (of which 125 are from China), presents in depth the latest judgments of business leaders on economic growth, business environment and strategic transformation, and focuses on core topics such as investment in artificial intelligence, talent and organizational transformation, technological governance and sustainable development. Research shows that 73% of Chinese CEOs have confidence in global economic growth in the next three years, up 15 percentage points from last year; 82% have confidence in China's economic growth in the next three years. Among major economies, Chinese business managers have the highest confidence in the local economy.

Zou Jun, Chairman of KPMG Asia Pacific and China, said that Chinese business leaders' confidence in growth is being based more on their own strategic choices and capacity building. Standing at a new starting point at the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan, the Chinese economy's industrial foundation, innovation vitality and transformation space provided strong support for enterprises to create long-term value. Facing the rise of emerging industries and changes in the competitive landscape, enterprises need to seize the opportunities brought by new momentum growth and continue to invest in technology, talent, and governance capacity building to transform their confidence in the future into sustainable business results.