Climate change is becoming the number one concern around the world

AXA Future Risks Report 2022

Climate change becomes the number one risk in all geographies
Geopolitical risks come in second, overtaking cyber and pandemic risks
Sense of vulnerability to certain risks increases and confidence wanes

New York, NY (Nov. 7, 2022) – AXA is pleased to announce it has released the ninth edition of its Future Risks Report. This global survey measures and ranks the evolution of perceptions of emerging risks. It is based on responses from a panel of 4,500 risk experts from 58 countries and a representative sample of 20,000 people from 15 countries. This report is produced in partnership with the IPSOS research institute and the geopolitical analysis consultancy Eurasia Group.

For the first time, climate risk tops the list of experts’ concerns in all regions of the world and becomes the main concern of the general public in the United States. Last year, US experts ranked cyber risk first and Asian experts ranked pandemic risk second.

Geopolitical risks come in second place, overtaking cyber and pandemic risks. 95% of the experts surveyed expect geopolitical tensions to persist and spread throughout the world. As an indirect consequence, energy-related risks are now in fourth place, up from 17th place last year.

Economic risks are increasing and fuelling social tensions. For the first time, experts rank three economic risks in their top 10: financial instability, macroeconomic deterioration and monetary and fiscal stress. Inflation is becoming an important concern for both experts and the general public.

In the general population, the feeling of vulnerability remains at a very high level (80% of respondents consider themselves more vulnerable than five years ago), and is even increasing in the face of certain risks such as climate change and the energy crisis. Furthermore, confidence in certain categories of decision-makers to find solutions is worsening, particularly regarding public authorities (58% vs. 62% in 2021), private companies (45% vs. 47% in 2021) and even scientists (66% vs. 75% in 2021). This general trend can be explained by the fact that the public believes that the level of preparation of public authorities for certain risks – such as climate change, cyber or geopolitical tensions – is insufficient.

“The 2022 edition of AXA’s Future Risk Report describes an overheated world, where crises are stacked on each other. It also confirms underlying trends such as the fear of climate change, a heightened sense of vulnerability among populations and the decline in trust in major institutions to find sustainable solutions,” said Thomas Buberl, CEO of AXA. “These trends point to an additional risk, the feeling of powerlessness, at a time when we need the mobilisation of all actors to provide collective, innovative and coordinated responses. The insurance sector in particular, can contribute its expertise in terms of prevention and protection. At AXA, we are determined to play our part to the full.”

Access the report: AXA Future Risks Report 2022.

About AXA Group

The AXA Group is a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management, with 149,000 employees serving 95 million clients in 50 countries. In 2021, IFRS revenues amounted to Euro 99.9 billion and underlying earnings to Euro 6.8 billion. AXA had Euro 1,051 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2021.

The AXA ordinary share is listed on compartment A of Euronext Paris under the ticker symbol CS (ISN FR 0000120628 – Bloomberg: CS FP – Reuters: AXAF.PA). AXA’s American Depository Share is also quoted on the OTC QX platform under the ticker symbol AXAHY.

The AXA Group is included in the main international SRI indexes, such as Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and FTSE4GOOD.

It is a founding member of the UN Environment Programme’s Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) Principles for Sustainable Insurance and a signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment.

For more information, visit axa.com.

SOURCE: AXA

Tags: AXA, climate change, outlook / predictions, top risks