29th Global CEO Survey - Middle East Consumer Markets findings.

The Middle East consumer-markets cut of PwC's annual CEO survey. Regional consumer-business leaders are far more bullish than their global peers on growth and deals, and are applying AI to demand generation at nearly three times the global rate.

Key findings

• 90% of Middle East consumer-markets CEOs expect local economic growth to improve over the next year, up from 63% a year earlier.
• 53% have already applied AI to demand generation, compared with 18% globally.
• 78% expect AI to increase junior hiring, compared with 28% globally.
• 88% plan at least one major acquisition in the next three years (47% globally); the region saw 121 consumer-markets deals in 2025, up about 17%.
• The top threats are geopolitical conflict (44%), climate change (31%) and cyber risk (29%); concern about inflation fell from 47% to 25%.

Why it matters

Regional consumer brands are moving AI into marketing and demand generation much faster than global peers, which raises expectations of agencies and in-house teams.

About this report

Published by PwC Middle East, 2026-02-25. Free to download. Get the full report from PwC Middle East