44 percent of CE0s say global economy will improve in 2014: PwC

Mumbai: 44 percent of CEOs surveyed by management consultancy, PwC, believe that this year the industry will see growth. It's quite the U-turn, especially considering last year, only 16 percent of CEOs had any something positive things to say about the year ahead. The study also states that in the past 12 months, 86 percent of CEOs have had to implement cost-cutting measures. But on the plus side, 90 percent of the respondents are optimistic of growth over the next three years. Interestingly, 78 percent of CEOs are worried about the increasing tax burden on their manufacturing costs, which could possibly side-track growth, and 74 percent of them are worried about the volatility of foreign exchange rates. China remains a key growth market in most CEOs’ eyes, and Central and Eastern Asia as well. A large chunk of company heads believe it's time to change their customer growth and retention strategies. Also, 82 percent have stated that it's important to measure and try to reduce their environmental footprint. The survey interviewed 1,344 business leaders across 68 countries.