The Year Ahead Outlook 2026 Summit | Building Consensus in the Industry and Exploring the Global Business Future Together
On November 28, 2025, the The Year Ahead 2026 Outlook Summit, hosted by BusinessWeek and with Mercedes-Benz as the chief strategic partner, successfully concluded at the MGM Shanghai on the West Bund. Leaders and professionals from various industries gathered together to explore the promising global business future.
The Year Ahead Outlook Summit was founded by Bloomberg Group in 2015. Through the analysis of macroeconomics, finance, energy, healthcare, technology, retail, agriculture, transportation and other fields, it helps business decision-makers make forward-looking plans. Over the years, the "Outlook" has become an offline forum with far-reaching influence in the domestic business community, and an important platform for people from all walks of life to gain insights into business trends and connect with advantageous resources.
This year marks the 11th year since the Outlook Summit landed in China. Continuing the core positioning of BusinessWeek of "leading, not following" and the distinct features of "forward-looking, practical and international", at the end of the year when the old is ending and the new is about to begin, we based on the panoramic review of 2025 and the trend prediction of 2026, and condensed strategic insights with both professional depth and forward-looking value.
The three core sections of "China and the World", "Urban Culture and Business", and "Technology and Sustainability", from solid content sharing to intense ideological collisions, received enthusiastic on-site feedback and extensive online discussions at this year's summit. Li Jian, the publisher of the BusinessWeek business group and the executive director of Hypermedia Holdings Group, and Fan Rongjing, the executive editor-in-chief of the BusinessWeek business group, jointly hosted the summit and delivered welcome speeches.
Li Jian first welcomed everyone to the The Year Ahead 2026 Outlook Summit. In his speech, he said that in an era full of uncertainties and challenges, since its founding, BusinessWeek has always paid attention to global economic and business dynamics, especially those changes and challenges that may lead future trends. "We hope to provide forward-looking insights for investors and corporate decision-makers to help them make more accurate decisions." In addition, he also briefly reviewed the development history of BusinessWeek. "As a global comprehensive business media, especially our successful expansion in the Chinese market, all demonstrate the cross-platform and diversified influence of BusinessWeek."
Li Jian, Publisher of BusinessWeek Business Group and Executive Director of Hypermedia Holdings Group
Fan Rongjing introduced in his speech that BusinessWeek has a novel design and professional editorial content, positioning itself as "international perspective, global business opportunities, business innovation and humanistic care". With its media perspective of insights, fun and inspiration to view the world from a different angle, it has won wide recognition from people from all walks of life. "In terms of the global situation, from the US tariff policy, to the fluctuations of Bitcoin and gold, to the debate triggered by the AI bubble... Facing the profound changes in 2025, BusinessWeek has launched a series of important topics and reports following the trends to help readers seize the opportunities in the changes."
Fan Rongjing, Executive Editor-in-Chief of BusinessWeek Business Group
China and the World
Reshaping the Pattern and Embracing the Future of Globalization
In the first keynote speech of the "China and the World" section, Zhu Yi, a senior economist at Bloomberg, deeply analyzed the main domestic and international economic situations in 2025 and the potential economic growth forecast of China in 2026 from a macro perspective. "Although many economists are worried that tariffs will bring great negative impacts, judging from the macroeconomic data of the past year, the global economy still maintained strong resilience," Zhu Yi said. "In addition to short-term stimulus policies, we also need structural policy support to boost consumption more widely and sustainably."
Zhu Yi, Senior Economist at Bloomberg
In the subsequent round-table session, think-tanks from top institutions and industry leaders had a dialogue on the "Outlook for Investment and Wealth Management in 2026". Liu Yue, the executive editor-in-chief of Bloomberg News in Greater China, served as the host of this session. From putting forward unique insights that triggered thinking and hot discussions to providing accurate market investment guidance for high-net-worth clients at home and abroad, Hong Hao, the managing partner of Lotus Asset Management Co., Ltd., Li Bei, the founding partner of Shanghai Banxia Investment Management Center, and Fu Peng, a well-known economist, participated in the discussion to deeply decode the asset allocation logic and wealth appreciation path under the macro changes.
Hong Hao said that this year, the returns on commodities, mining and mining stocks were greater than those on AI investments. The banking sector in China also did not experience significant fluctuations, which felt much better than holding large technology stocks. Li Bei said that many new assets are full of uncertainties, and one should focus more on those "flowers blooming in the cold winter" to ensure stable "small certainties". Fu Peng said that as an investor, the best way is to "follow the trend", and the investment portfolio should be a "dumbbell-shaped allocation" with dividend stocks at the bottom.
From left to right:
Liu Yue, Executive Editor-in-Chief of Bloomberg News in Greater China
Hong Hao, Managing Partner of Lotus Asset Management Co., Ltd.
Li Bei, Founding Partner of Shanghai Banxia Investment Management Center
Fu Peng, Well-known Economist
In the subsequent VCR session, Wang Shutong, the founder of DHgate, delivered a keynote speech on "The Future of Globalization": The new globalization is returning to the value of people themselves, showing an "altruistic attitude", connecting real people and building a sustainable community network. "Everyone is a participant, co-creator and contributor of value in globalization." Regarding the emerging future of globalization, she abandoned the current hot topics and put forward the "Three Beliefs": real connections, long-term relationships and being rooted in the local area can support the future of globalization.
Wang Shutong, Founder of DHgate
In the current era of information explosion and noise, we need more sober thinking and break out of the herd mentality and the myth of traffic. In the dialogue session of the "China and the World" section, Wang Fang, the host of the BusinessWeek podcast "Anyway", started from the "universal key" of trade negotiations and had an in-depth dialogue with Sun Bingyan, an expert on American issues in the Department of International Politics at the University of International Relations, providing new ideas for understanding global policy and cultural issues from multiple perspectives.
Left: Wang Fang, Host of the BusinessWeek Podcast "Anyway"
Right: Sun Bingyan, Expert on American Issues in the Department of International Politics at the University of International Relations
In the last session of the morning, Yu Chen'ao, the managing director and global partner of Boston Consulting Group, delivered an excellent speech to the summit audience with the theme of "Redefining the Boundaries of Intelligence: Observations on the Global Enterprises' Generative AI Practices". "Developing countries are embracing the technological wave with greater enthusiasm, and China will re-establish the generational advantage of cost and utility in the resources of AI engineers," Yu Chen'ao said. "The application of generative AI has gone beyond the trial stage and entered a new era of professional division of labor. The real challenge lies in how to deeply integrate AI capabilities into the enterprise workflow and unleash its huge potential to reshape the business model."
Yu Chen'ao, Managing Director and Global Partner of Boston Consulting Group
Urban Culture and Business
From All-round Renewal to Coexistence and Mutual Prosperity
In the afternoon's "Urban Culture and Business" section, the opening session was an excellent dialogue between Wu Yue, the president of LVMH Group in Greater China, and Li Jian, the publisher of the Bloomberg BusinessWeek business group and the executive director of Hypermedia Group. Centering on the theme of "Streetscapes: The Connection between Cities and Business", they focused on the "mutual prosperity ecosystem" of the coordinated development of industrial upgrading, urban renewal and cultural expression.
In 2025, Bloomberg CITYLAB launched the "Streetscape Column" to observe cities from multiple perspectives. The first issue focused on the social phenomenon-level project of "Louis". At a time when the global economy is full of uncertainties and the domestic consumer market is seeking breakthroughs, as an excellent example of the deep integration of brand and urban culture, this close combination and efficient interaction among the government, enterprises, the market and culture, as well as the new exploration of the retail model, are extremely rare in the world.
Wu Yue, President of LVMH Group in Greater China
As the most internationally influential Chinese-American architect from the last century to the present, I.M. Pei is not only a genius in art, but also a master who integrates structural rationality, cost control and spatial poetry, said Ke Wei, the founding partner and chief architect of Chiasmus Architecture Firm. In the keynote speech of the "Design Notes - Thinking Hall - Retrospective Exhibition of I.M. Pei in Shanghai", he said that "the truly valuable part of I.M. Pei's architecture is the 'empty' part - it is the container of space and light, and the stage for events to take place." Focusing on Ke Wei's exhibition design work itself, it is a hall carrying the spirit of I.M. Pei - this is not only an exhibition, but also an architectural dialogue that guides viewers to experience and reflect repeatedly.
Ke Wei, Founding Partner and Chief Architect of Chiasmus Architecture Firm
Based on the architectural practice of "Oriental Futurism", Liu Haowei, the founder and chief architect of CAA Architecture Firm, said in his keynote speech that "we always adhere to the concept of 'designing only for tomorrow' and let design penetrate into social and life aesthetics. In the future, we will take architectural art as the core, integrate traditional Chinese philosophy and humanistic spirit with new futurism, and develop the 'Oriental Futurist Architectural Concept' to make large public buildings not only carry cultural genes, but also become platforms to promote social innovation."
Liu Haowei, Founder and Chief Architect of CAA Architecture Firm
Over the years, the Outlook Summit has continuously focused on brands that have successfully attracted public attention and achieved remarkable success in the market through innovative marketing strategies and unique brand images. In the subsequent dialogue session, Fu Song, the founder of Shanyouyousong, and Zou Yumeng, the head of the business group of Bloomberg BusinessWeek, talked about "The Sound from the Distant Mountains". "On the road of brand going global, we always choose to adhere to the expression of Chinese aesthetics, be the most authentic ourselves, and continuously convey the voice from the East to the world. No matter in what cultural background, people's perception of beautiful things is the same," Fu Song said.
