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Global Defence Outlook 2015
Defence and development
The global economy becoming less militarised, cyber-attacks on the rise in the world's richest economies and violence and terrorism becoming more concentrated to poor nations – these are a few of the key trends which are driving government mindsets. How will the world and various nation's respond to these shifting trends and what does the future look like for the defence industry? The world continues to evolve and with it the challenges faced by those planning and spending on its defence.
Executive Summary
Deloitte’s third annual Global Defence Outlook examines policies, practices and trends affecting the defense budgets and strategies of the 50 nations whose combined defense budgets total over 95% of global defense spending (the “Top 50”). This year’s report describes how violence from terrorism and battle has become chronic and concentrated in a few very poor countries, and also shows how vulnerability to cyber-attack is increasing rapidly in the world’s richest economies.
“Higher-income nations are reducing the growth of defense budgets to accommodate domestic economic priorities, and lower-income nations are generally increasing defense spending to accelerate economic development” said report author Jack Midgley, Director with Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting in Tokyo. “Development is re-shaping global security, as the defense capabilities of rich and poor countries begin to converge”.
“Defence budget realities are driving governments and defense companies to promote defense exports, but a mismatch may be growing between defence market supply and demand” added Midgley.
Key Report Highlights:
- The global economy is becoming less militarised, with defence spending absorbing smaller shares of GDP, labor and government expenses
- While rich countries are less exposed to battle-related deaths and terrorism, they have become much more vulnerable to cyberattack than their less-developed neighbors
- The worldwide levelling of military technology may have less to do with underfunding in America than with continued Asian economic development
- Accelerating economic development has created new challenges for defense ministries struggling to recruit and retain the quantity and quality of personnel required to operate increasingly-sophisticated defence equipment.
Register to download the full report to learn how these new trends are affecting the global defense outlook for government's and the defence industry.
Read the latest from the Deloitte Global Perspectives blog to gain more insights on trends in defense spending from Jack Midgley, Director, Deloitte Consulting LLP and author of the report.