In a world already weakened by rising rivalries, unstable supply chains and prolonged conflicts at risk of regional spillover, such confrontation carries systemic, deliberate and far-reaching global consequences, increasing state fragility. The centrality of Geoeconomic confrontation in the global risks landscape is not restricted to 2026, with respondents selecting it as the top risk over the two-year time horizon (to 2028, Figure 3), as well, up eight positions from last year (Figure D). Geoeconomic confrontation threatens the core of the interconnected global economy, as explored further in Section 2.2: Multipolarity without multilateralism.Economic risks are intensifying Economic risks, taken collectively, show the largest increases in ranking over the next two years, albeit from relatively low rankings last year. Economic downturn and Inflation are both up eight positions, to #11 and #21 respectively, with a similar uptick for Asset bubble burst, up seven positions to #18 (Figure 4). Economic downturn has witnessed one of the largest increases in severity score compared with last year’s findings, behind only Geoeconomic confrontation. Section 2.4: An economic reckoning explores how, over the next two years, mounting debt sustainability concerns coupled with potential economic bubbles – in a context of rising Geoeconomic confrontation – could herald a new phase of volatility, potentially further destabilizing societies and businesses. 0 5 10 15 20 Share of respondents (%)Current Global Risk Landscape FIGURE 2 Geoeconomic confrontation 18% State-based armed conflict Extreme weather events Societal polarization Misinformation and disinformation Economic downturn Erosion of human rights and/or of civic freedoms Adverse outcomes of AI technologies Cyber insecurity Inequality Lack of economic opportunity or unemployment Concentration of strategic resources and technologies Critical change to Earth systems Natural resource shortages Disruptions to critical infrastructure Asset bubble burst Debt Disruptions to a systemically important supply chain Decline in health and well-being Involuntary migration or displacement Biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse Biological, chemical or nuclear weapons or hazards Inflation Pollution Insuf ficient public infrastructure and social protections Infectious diseases Non-weather related natural disasters Censorship and surveillance Crime and illicit economic activity Adverse outcomes of frontier technologies Intrastate violence Online harms Talent and/or labour shortages 14% 8% 7% 7% 5% 4% 4% 3% 3% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% <1% <1% <1% <1% “Please select one risk that you believe is most likely to present a material crisis on a global scale in 2026.” Source World Economic Forum Global Risks Perception Survey 2025-2026Risk categories Economic Environmental Geopolitical Societal Technological Global Risks Report 2026 8