CEO INSIGHTS – Week Ending 3 July 2026

Cost Pressures

“From a cost perspective, Collins Foods expects a relatively stable cost environment to prevail overall in FY27. Commodity inflation is expected to be flat to modest in Australia, while in Europe, deflation is anticipated. Fuel surcharge impacts on the cost base have been modest to date. Whilst labour inflation remains elevated in Australia and Europe, productivity initiatives driven by AI-powered operations and automation are progressing to plan.” Market Statement, Collins Foods Ltd

Superannuation

"Barriers like the cost of accessing an adviser outside of super and limitations on the scope of advice that super fund advisers can provide really get in the way of people getting the trustworthy information they need." Mary Delahunty, CEO, Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia

“The problem is the government continues to mess and interfere with super, so people have lost confidence in that mechanism. And so, as a country, we really need to start thinking about how we can get more people advised to the point where they can be more self-reliant. But every time you attack aspiration, you attack the opportunity for people to actually come off the government dime.” Arnie Selvarajah, CEO, Bell Financial Group Ltd

Defence & Drones

"As global threats continue to evolve, directed energy [highly focused electromagnetic energy] has emerged as an essential and cost-effective solution for countering high-volume, low-cost drone attacks." Wahid Nawabi, Chairman, CEO, AeroVironment, Inc. [US maker of military drones and counter-drone / directed-energy systems]

Travel Demand

“It's still, sort of, fair to say that also, if you look at industry development from, sort of, a total picture perspective, what we have seen is, of course, costs that have raised a lot due to the increased fuel cost. But at the same time, we have also seen improved yields, and I think this is testimony to the fact that demand has remained stable.” Pia Aaltonen-Forsell, CFO, Finnair

"The global business travel market is growing, but the more important shift underway is structural. The industry is shifting from search-led travel management to AI-led travel execution." Darrin Grafton, CEO, Serko Ltd [New Zealand business-travel software company]

Connectivity & Internet

“The demand for connectivity has never been greater.” Brian Roberts, CEO, Comcast Cable Communications Inc

Gas Turbines & Power Generation

“The gas market remains clearly supply constrained. While tighter supply conditions are attracting additional entrants, including smaller players and alternative technologies, this is expected given the market conditions…The additional capacity additions we are seeing in the industrial gas turbine space do not affect the overall supply-demand imbalance.” Market Statement, Siemens Energy A.G.

Hyperscaler Spending Vs Global Economy

"Disappointment in returns could trigger a sudden pullback in financing and turn the capex boom into a protracted investment bust, with potential knock-on effects on financial conditions." Market Statement, Bank of International Settlements

Packaged Food & Health Trends

"Consumers have always cared about their food tasting good, being good for them and value — but those definitions change over time. E-commerce is the new convenience, and on health, now it's really all about protein." Jeffrey Harmening, CEO, General Mills, Inc. [US packaged-food maker of Cheerio and Häagen-Dazs]

Beverages & the Consumer

"We talk a lot about a K-shaped economy, and you also see K-shaped consumer behaviour — value-driven at one end, and at the other, consumers willing to pay more for a very premium experience." Nicholas Fink, CEO, Constellation Brands, Inc. [US brewer and wine/spirits group behind Modelo and Corona]

Mining & Smelters

"Over time, the value shifts in the value chain between mining, refining and smelting — you never quite know where the constraint will be. Right now, the constraint is in smelting capacity; hence, the value is accruing to smelting." William Oplinger, CEO, Alcoa Corp. [acquirer of South32's aluminium assets]

Data

"As more work shifts from humans doing the work to agents doing the work, the quality of the output depends on the quality of the data that's going in." Joshua Warren, CFO, FactSet Research Systems Inc.

Sportswear

"Our consumer is under pressure around the world, and we can particularly see it having a larger impact on Sportswear, which declined double digits in the quarter." Matt Friend, CFO, NIKE, Inc.

Railcars

"Industry forecasts indicate less than 25,000 new railcars [will be built] for calendar 2026 — the lowest level since 2010...it's a matter of when, not if, new railcar demand will increase." Lorie Tekorius, CEO, The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. [top global maker of railroad freight cars]