|
58% of respondents expect to spend more on research and development in next 12 months
MOST business leaders in the Asia-Pacific believe it will take two to three years for the global economy to recover fully.
In the meantime, many are gearing up for future growth and plan to spend more on research and development in the next 12 months.
These findings come from a survey conducted jointly by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and organisers of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) CEO Summit this year.
From August to November, 350 summit participants and corporate figures took part in the study. PwC partners also interviewed 24 industry leaders for the project.
Results from the survey reflect continued caution and uncertainty on the part of the business community. Asked if the worst of the economic crisis had passed, just a slight majority - or 58 per cent - of respondents agreed that was the case, while 25 per cent were non-committal and 17 per cent disagreed.
There also seems to be little consensus on how long the downturn would last.
Around 37 per cent of respondents felt the global economy would reach full recovery two to three years later, while a close 31 per cent was more optimistic and set a one to two year timeframe.
Some 15 per cent of respondents also thought that it would take more than three years for a complete recovery to happen.
High unemployment rates in some economies would have dampened business leaders' outlooks. In the US for instance, the unemployment rate surged to 10.2 per cent last month and some economists expect it to continue rising.
In the survey, 53 per cent of respondents did not think unemployment levels would return to where they were before the economic crisis hit. Business leaders from the Americas were most pessimistic about the job market.
Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co Ltd chairman Xu Heyi believes that employment pressure will remain high in China. As global demand weakened, 'China's export-oriented enterprises have fallen in scale and number, leading to a decline in demand for labour. This is being exacerbated by new entrants into the job market'.
But even with the downturn, many businesses with an eye on the longer term plan to continue investing in innovation.
Around 58 per cent of respondents expect to spend more on research and development in the next 12 months compared with the current fiscal year.
The survey also asked respondents about the need to balance consumption and savings in key economies.
Some 53 per cent of respondents felt that emerging Apec economies should reduce their current account surpluses by spending more.
The sentiment was strongest among respondents from the Americas, but weakest among those from North-east Asia.
|
