Global trade patterns are transforming significantly as new economic corridors emerge and traditional relationships evolve. According to new research from Boston Consulting Group (BCG), world trade in goods is projected to grow at an average of 2.9% annually through 2033, with the GCC region playing an increasingly pivotal role in connecting major trade routes between East and West.

These insights are among the key findings of BCG’s latest report, “Great Powers, Geopolitics, and the Future of Trade,” which analyzes trade and economic data from more than 150 countries. The report comprehensively analyzes how shifting global trade dynamics will impact regional and international commerce through 2033.

Strong Trade Growth Across Key GCC Corridors

The BCG report reveals a robust outlook for GCC trade, with total trade volume set to reach 2.3T USD by 2033. This growth is supported by significant expansion across multiple trade corridors, with China emerging as the largest growth market at 88B USD (5.7% CAGR), followed by Japan at 46B USD (9.4% CAGR). The analysis shows GCC’s non-hydrocarbon trade will grow by 3.5% annually, highlighting the region’s successful economic diversification efforts.

As global trade patterns shift, the GCC strengthens its position as a critical connector between East and West. This is evidenced by the broader transformation in global trade flows, where China’s trade with the Global South is set to increase by $1.25T and trade between developing nations is projected to grow by $673B through 2033. The GCC’s strategic location and expanding infrastructure position the region to capture value from these evolving trade dynamics.

Rami Rafih, Managing Director and Partner at BCG, said: “The reconfiguration of global trade flows presents a pivotal moment for the GCC. As trade routes transform, the region isn’t just a geographic intermediary but a central orchestrator of new patterns. The GCC’s deliberate investment in capabilities positions it to achieve greater success through developing proactive and risk-based options rather than defaulting to reactionary responses. The key is leveraging this foundation to shape emerging trade corridors, particularly as Global South commerce evolves.”

Global Trade Shifts Create New Opportunities

The report identifies major transformations across key trading regions that will reshape global commerce. While North America solidifies as a resilient trade bloc with US-Mexico trade increasing by $315B by 2033, ASEAN emerges as a significant beneficiary of global shifts with 3.7% annual trade growth. India’s trajectory is particularly notable, with total trade expected to reach $1.8T annually by 2033, driven by its increasing role as a global manufacturing hub.

The growing power of the Global South represents one of the most significant developments in global trade. Representing 18% of global GDP and 62% of the world’s population, these 133 developing nations are set to expand their trade significantly. Annual trade among Global South nations will grow by $673B over the next decade, while trade between the Global South and developed economies is projected to reach $1.67T annually by 2033.

To navigate these shifting trade dynamics and capitalize on emerging opportunities, BCG’s report outlines several key imperatives for business leaders in the region:

Key Recommendations for Business Leaders

• Develop resilient and transparent supply chains by diversifying sourcing strategies and deepening relationships with key suppliers across emerging trade corridors
• Build geopolitical capabilities to better anticipate and respond to changing trade dynamics, particularly in rapidly evolving markets across Asia and Africa
• Expand presence in growth markets, focusing on opportunities in India, China, and other emerging economies where GCC trade is projected to grow significantly
• Embrace smart nearshoring strategies that leverage the GCC’s strategic position between East and West trade routes
• Invest in regional differentiation as global trade fragments, adapting operations and technology to serve diverse market requirements

Cristian Rodriguez-Chiffelle, Partner and Director, Trade, Investment & Geopolitics at BCG, said: “For business leaders, navigating today’s complex trade landscape requires more than agile supply chains – it demands an insights-driven approach to geopolitical shifts. Success will come to those who cultivate deep market intelligence, develop robust scenario planning, and build a portfolio of strategic options, thus building a “geopolitical muscle.” While diversification improves resilience, the real opportunity lies in shaping new trading partnerships that bridge geopolitical divides, and extracts not only challenges but also opportunities arising from geopolitical events.”

Only a quarter (25%) think their approach to the cloud is carefully considered and successful.

According to new data from SolarWinds, less than one in five (18%) IT professionals believe their present cloud infrastructure satisfies their business needs, indicating a large disconnect between expectations and reality when it comes to cloud adoption.

The research, based on a survey of 272 global IT professionals, shows that despite the cloud’s promises of scalability and cost savings, the reality is mixed for many IT teams: only a quarter of those surveyed (25%) feel their organisation’s approach to the cloud is carefully considered and successful, while 23% admit their hybrid cloud strategy has created an overly complex IT environment. Despite this, less than a quarter (22%) of respondents have invested in external IT services to help with their cloud migration strategy.

In response to these cloud challenges, more than one in ten (16%) respondents have already repatriated workloads back to on-premises. Meanwhile, a further 12% acknowledge that poorly planned cloud transitions have already resulted in long-term financial impacts on their organisations. This goes to show that rushed cloud migrations can lead to costly fixes or reversals.

The data also indicates a lack of trust in cloud security, with nearly half (46%) of IT pros still storing their most sensitive data on-premises due to persistent security worries. However, the findings do highlight a continued focus on cloud strategies with the aim of reducing costs. In fact, nearly a third (29%) of respondents say they are prioritising cloud migration to cut operational costs.

Commenting on the findings, Sascha Giese, Global Tech Evangelist at SolarWinds, said, “The truth is, managing complex hybrid-cloud ecosystems isn’t easy. While the cloud promises scalability and cost savings, the gap between expectation and execution is becoming increasingly evident. In this landscape, many businesses find themselves grappling with overly complex infrastructures that struggle to meet evolving needs.”

In a hybrid cloud world with increasingly complex networks, systems, devices, and applications, managing microservices and containers adds to the challenge. Without proper planning and comprehensive visibility, organisations risk finding themselves in a dire situation. Tool sprawl, information silos, and alert fatigue can all lead to an unpleasant cloud experience, making it harder to identify the root causes of complex issues.

“To overcome these challenges, IT leaders must adopt a more strategic and informed approach to cloud migration, focusing on tools that are reliable, secure, and accelerate modernisation. One key advantage businesses can leverage to successfully manage their hybrid cloud infrastructures is

comprehensive observability. That means gaining real-time visibility into every layer of the IT estate and acting proactively with the assistance of machine learning algorithms and AI-driven analytics. Cloud infrastructure can be a powerful growth enabler, but with a mess of mismatched tools and poor visibility, it will be a bumpy ride,” added Giese.

Cisco Identifies Technology Trends that will Define 2025

2025 marks a pivotal moment where AI, cybersecurity, data governance, and sustainability converging to redefine the business environment.

Cisco revealed key technology trends for 2025, emphasizing a landscape shaped by shifting consumer behaviour, an expanding digital ecosystem, and the need to integrate AI. Reflecting these dynamics, the Middle East emerges as a hub of innovation, with rapid adoption of AI, cloud, cybersecurity, and smart city initiatives. IT spending in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is projected to total $230.7 billion in 2025, an increase of 7.4% from 2024, according to Gartner, Inc.

David Meads, Vice President for the Middle East, Africa, Türkiye, Romania, and CIS at Cisco, commented: “By embracing this year’s technology trends with both strategic foresight and pragmatism, companies can effectively navigate challenges and seize growth opportunities.” He added: “The Middle East is witnessing a significant surge in technology investment, driven by a strong commitment from both governments and private enterprises aimed at establishing the region as a leader in technological innovation. This rapid adoption of technology provides businesses with unique opportunities to enhance efficiency, boost productivity, improve customer experiences, and gain a competitive edge.”

Humanoids and humans collaborating will force companies to rethink workplace dynamics. 

AI-powered humanoids will form a part of the future workforce. This will force companies to completely reimagine their workplace dynamics. For example, companies will need to ensure their connectivity has the right levels of latency and throughout to process and analyse data in real time.  At the same time, organizations must ensure their security postures.

This human and machine collaboration will be inspiring and allow organizations to greatly scale operations but will also likely trigger concerns about AI replacing jobs. Leaders will need to be clear and uncompromising about harnessing AI’s power without losing the human touch that defines world-class customer experiences. 

AI will present challenges for companies, particularly regarding infrastructure and data readiness.

AI will continue to captivate businesses, promising unprecedented innovation and efficiency, and companies will continue to invest in AI-powered solutions. As AI journeys progress, so too will the understanding that the path is fraught with hurdles. Despite billions of dollars invested into AI models and AI-powered solutions in 2024, new data from Cisco’s AI Readiness Index shows that AI readiness has declined as now only 13% of companies are ready to leverage AI-powered technologies to their full potential.  

In 2025 organizations will grapple with how best to secure the right level of compute power to meet AI workloads. Companies will need to lean on their strategic partners to identify and prioritize their AI use cases. IT teams will experience increasing pressure to optimize the management, hygiene, which is currently spread across multiple systems and locations.

Network downtime due to misconfiguration will approach zero.

Over 40% of network outages are directly caused by misconfigurations, and can cost businesses 9% of their total annual revenue. AI has the potential to virtually eliminate these manual misconfiguration mishaps.

Intelligent, automated tools can execute workflows throughout the network lifecycle and provide traceability for every action. AI-driven tools will revolutionize network management, learning from each configuration to reduce errors and ensure uninterrupted operations. As AI adoption increases, we expect to see a rapid decline in misconfigurations and network downtime caused by human error approach zero.

Companies will need help to balance sustainability and growth in an AI-powered era.  

The environmental impact of AI is the elephant in a lot of rooms. AI requires high energy consumption levels that impact carbon emissions across the board. The energy used by AI-dedicated data centres is expected to match the amount consumed by a country the size of the Netherlands in one year. Sustainability frequently arises in discussions with customers, who increasingly seek partners that can help them achieve net-zero commitments and sustainability goals.

Successful businesses will prioritize energy-efficient products and circular business models. AI technology will be pivotal in enhancing energy efficiencies, ushering in an era of “energy networking” that combines software-defined networking with direct current (DC) microgrids for improved visibility into emissions and optimization of power usage, distribution, and storage.