The report from the World Economic Forum finds that structural disruption is compelling a rethink of investment strategies. This is with 3 out of 4 business leaders prioritising resilience as a growth driver.
Today’s volatility shows a fundamental rewriting of global value chains. This is driven by geopolitics, industrial policies, the energy transition, and technological acceleration.
Moving forward, the report sets out a dual approach. It defines strategic imperatives for industry and a blueprint for industrial policy. This will occur while a complementary interactive tool assists businesses and governments in assessing manufacturing risks, strengths, and gaps.
Global value chains have entered an era of structural volatility, as shared by the World Economic Forum report that was released on 19 February ’26. This compels governments and companies to re-evaluate how and where they invest and produce. This report reveals that nearly 3/4 of business leaders now prioritise resilience investments. With 74% viewing resilience as a driver of growth,
This increase is set against a backdrop of geopolitical fragmentation. This trend accelerates technological change and increases resource constraints. The data is shared in the new report – Global Value Chains Outlook 2026. It orchestrates corporate and national agility. It is developed in collaboration with Kearney. It examines how governments and companies could remain competitive. This scenario is where disruption becomes a permanent feature rather than a cyclical shock.
The World Economic Forum’s Managing Director, Kiva Allgood, said that volatility is no longer a temporary disruption. He went on to add that it is rather a structural condition that leaders may need to plan for. He opined that competitive advantages now originate from foresight, optionality, and ecosystem coordination. He further stated that countries and companies that build these capabilities together will be best positioned to attract investment. This is besides securing supply and sustaining growth in an increasingly fragmented global economy.
The scale of the shift is already quite evident. Last year (2025) alone, tariff escalations between major economies reshuffled more than USD 400 billion in global trade flows. This was whilst there were disruptions across major shipping routes. It also pushed container shipping costs up 40% year-over-year. The increase signalled a decisive move away from short-term shocks towards enduring uncertainty. Simultaneously, manufacturing output across advanced economies is growing at its weakest pace since 15 years ago, in 2009. This occurred while more than 3,000 new trade and industrial policy measures were introduced globally in 2025 alone. That amounts to more than 3 times the annual level recorded a decade back. These forces together underscore why supply chain resilience has become a central determinant of national competitiveness, besides corporate strategy.
A central feature of the report is the launch of the Manufacturing and Supply Chain Readiness Navigator. It is a new digital tool that translates these insights into actionable intelligence. It draws on leading global indices. Its Navigator supports strategic decision-making on industrial policy and manufacturing footprint design. Governments may use it to diagnose competitiveness gaps, besides prioritising reforms. This is why companies may assess infrastructure readiness. Additionally, companies may consider the maturity of the ecosystem when making decisions about location and investment.
This report also highlights how targeted national approaches are already shaping manufacturing competitiveness. For instance, in Ireland, enterprise-led upskilling through Skillnet Ireland links governments, businesses, and educators. Their goal is to deliver subsidised training aligned with industry needs. In China, large-scale investment in digital infrastructure under the New Infrastructure initiative has enabled real-time industrial connectivity. This effort is through widespread 5G deployment. In Qatar, a national dashboard tracking essential food items in real time strengthens supply security. The result enables early intervention, buffer stocks and rapid, data-driven responses to disruptions.
Partner at Kearney, Per Kristian Hong, said that supply chain disruption during 2026 would be constant and structural. Geopolitical fragmentation, shifting trade rules, and labour shortages are all redefining how value tends to be created and moved.
