The Asia Business Council Annual Survey conducted in July and August 2025 had a 69% response rate, gathering insights from CEOs and Chairmen of predominantly Asian businesses. Business sentiment across Asia remained mixed, with 44% expecting conditions to stay unchanged, 30% anticipating deterioration, and 26% expressing optimism.

The United States, India, and China remained the top destinations for new and increased investment, reflecting both trade uncertainties and market opportunities.

Geopolitics remained the dominant area of concern, especially tensions between the U.S. and China, cited by 98% of respondents. In parallel, domestic political volatility was also rising, noted by 47% of executives, compared with only 28% in the previous year. Many feared that internal politics could exacerbate regulatory shifts, delay spending, or unsettle investment environments.

Most respondents considered tariffs a lose-lose scenario, with nearly half of the respondents believing that trade deals disproportionately favored the U.S. Against this uncertainty, companies are diversifying supply chains and markets to reduce dependency on any single country.

AI adoption continued to grow rapidly, with 77% of leaders identifying predictive analytics as the most impactful trend, followed by AI automation and generative AI. Roughly three-quarters of firms planned to expand AI use for customer support and service operations. However, a shift in priorities placed talent acquisition and AI training over data availability.

When asked about how business could make cities more resilient, 70% pointed to sustainable infrastructure. Regarding talent recruitment and retention, 68% saw cross-cultural experience as central to developing globally competitive leaders, and around half supported subsidies for continued education.

Overall, the 2025 survey portrays a cautious but forward-looking business community balancing geopolitical anxiety with confidence in Asia’s long-term strengths in technology, human capital, and regional cooperation.