Insight Report Regional Risks for Doing Business 2018

The report identifies 'unemployment or underemployment' and 'failure of national governance' as the top two global business risks for 2018. It highlights a significant rise in the perceived threat of cyber-attacks, particularly in advanced economies. Regionally, the report notes that Eurasia is highly vulnerable to energy price shocks and interstate conflict, while sub-Saharan Africa faces a critical consensus on unemployment risks. In North America, cyber-attacks and data fraud are paramount, whereas Latin America and the Caribbean are dominated by concerns over national governance and social instability. The analysis emphasizes that while some risks are global, they crystallize locally based on regional economic and political conditions.

• Cyber-attacks have seen a significant increase in perceived risk, jumping from eighth to fifth position globally, and are the top concern in advanced economies in Europe, North America, and East Asia and the Pacific.
• In Europe, cyber-attacks are the leading risk, but there is significant concern regarding 'asset bubbles', particularly in Central Europe, potentially driven by expansionary monetary policy in the Eurozone.
• Eurasia is uniquely characterized by a high concern for 'interstate conflict', which ranked second regionally and first in Azerbaijan and Georgia.
• Energy price shocks are the primary risk in Eurasia and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with the latter seeing a rise in this risk as oil prices increased between 2017 and 2018.
• Sub-Saharan Africa shows an unprecedented regional consensus on the risk of unemployment, with 22 out of 34 surveyed countries identifying it as their most pressing concern.
• In South Asia, 'failure of national governance' is the leading risk, often linked to political instability during election cycles.
• East Asia and the Pacific identifies cyber-attacks as the top risk, while 'asset bubbles' are a critical concern in Hong Kong SAR and Cambodia.
• North American businesses prioritize cyber-attacks and data fraud, while also facing significant costs from 'extreme weather events' such as Hurricane Harvey and Canadian wildfires.
• Latin America and the Caribbean are primarily concerned with 'failure of national governance' and 'profound social instability', reflecting deep political polarization and mistrust of institutions.

APA

World Economic Forum (2018). Insight Report Regional Risks for Doing Business 2018. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Regional_Risks_Doing_Business_report_2018.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Insight Report Regional Risks for Doing Business 2018. 2018. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Regional_Risks_Doing_Business_report_2018.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Insight Report Regional Risks for Doing Business 2018 |date=2018 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Regional_Risks_Doing_Business_report_2018.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2018insight, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Insight Report Regional Risks for Doing Business 2018}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2018}, url = {http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Regional_Risks_Doing_Business_report_2018.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }