CEO INSIGHTS – Week Ending 13 December 2024

AI

"We see a really enormous pipeline in customers who understand that they can first automate and simplify their own businesses to spend less so they can invest in the things that differentiate them. But there's also enormous interest in using their data for AI and using those systems." Safra Catz, CEO, Oracle

Automotive

"The level of demand for new vehicles has reduced and is lower than last year. Customer demand continues to be impacted by cost of living pressures and demand for certain models, including Electric Vehicles, is mis-aligned with supply." Peter Warren Automotive Holdings [market statement]

Economy

“The US is not a soft landing or a hard landing — it’s kind of a no landing,” Watches of Switzerland, [market statement]

There's some weakness in the consumer sector. Europe is slower. But overall, it feels good. And if you look at the data broadly about small business optimism post-election, that feels good. So, I'd say economically, particularly here in the United States, we feel some very good momentum.” Jonathan Gray, CO-CEO, Blackstone Inc

Energy

“There is no economically prosperous nation in the world that is in energy deficit; that is a fact. If we are to maintain a competitive edge we have to understand how important coal is” Stuart Bocking, CEO, Coal Australia

Entertainment

“We had an enormous live audience, 108 million people watching live. You’d have to go back to the 80s to get a live audience that big that wasn’t a Super Bowl.” Theodore Sarandos, Co-CEO, Netflix

Freight/Logistics

"We predict anywhere between 5 and 7% (growth) overall. And at this stage, there's nothing that would indicate that it could not be the case," Charles van der Steene, Regional President for North America, Maersk

Health

“The United States is about 50 per cent of the world’s radiology market, by volume, so we’ve established ourselves as a clear winner in the rest of the world, and we now see a doubling of our total opportunities.” Aengus Tran, CEO, Harrison.ai

Interest Rates

“High interest rates have slowed the economy to the point whereby we’re on the verge of a full-blown recession.” Mark Bouris, Executive Chairman, Yellow Brick Home Loans‍

Marketing

“We remain highly confident in the long-term attractiveness of the Out Of Home (OOH) category, which continues to outperform the wider media market, with its market share growing to 15.1% at the end of October 2024." Cathy O'Connor, CEO, oOh!media

Property

“I have never seen it so fragmented. The market is behaving in different ways depending on the city, the precinct, and the building, though quality is the outperformer in every market.” Cameron Williams, Managing Director of Leasing, Colliers International

Retail

"We are really trying to create two peaks, one which is Black Friday, and the second one which is obviously...that weekend before Christmas and a couple of days before Christmas." Scott Fyfe, CEO, David Jones

"We think there's a $200 billion TAM just in the U.S. in gifting alone. And many people don't have a lot of confidence in terms of what to buy. In fact, 75% of men say they are not confident in buying a gift." Joshua Silverman, CEO, Etsy

Steel Industry

“There’s just been a total lack of investment in the steel industry for more than 40 years. Once the new mill is running, we will be the third-largest steel producer [in Australia]” Grant Johnston, CEO, Westview [private steel business]

Travel

“Virgin Australia’s additional flying into Doha is also great news for small businesses who are looking for opportunities to get their goods into the Middle East, especially the agricultural sector. The services sector will benefit from the additional $3 billion in economic value that will be delivered over the next five years from the increased inbound visitors, which means more jobs and more opportunities for the travel and tourism industry,” Jayne Hrdlicka, CEO, Virgin Australia‍