Deloitte study: geopolitical risks and pressure on margins are changing the priorities of European companies. More than 40% were affected by rising energy costs

European chief financial officers (CFOs) are more pessimistic than at any point in the past four years, amid heightened geopolitical and economic uncertainty, mounting margin pressure, and rising energy costs, according to the Deloitte European CFO Survey Spring 2026, conducted across 12 European countries. The revenue outlook remains relatively strong, with more than half of CFOs estimating revenue growth, but cost pressure and unpredictability are changing the business strategies of European companies.

Almost half of European CFOs (48%) say they are less optimistic about their companies' financial prospects than three months earlier, compared to just 25% in autumn 2025. This is the highest level of pessimism recorded by the survey since the energy crisis and supply chain disruptions stemming from the war in Ukraine in 2022.

Geopolitical risk is the main concern for CFOs, outweighing the risks associated with economic developments. The top three concerns related to geopolitical risk are energy shocks, Middle East conflict escalation, and critical materials disruptions. According to the study, in the last two years, 42% of European companies reported that rising energy costs have negatively affected profitability and investment decisions. In addition, 48% of respondents expect Middle East tensions to have negative effects on margins and investment decisions in the next 12 months.

European companies are managing to increase their sales but are struggling to convert this growth into turnover into stronger profitability, the survey shows. More than half of CFOs expect revenue to increase in the coming year, but 36% expect profit margins to decrease, while only 35% expect an improvement. Even among companies that anticipate revenue growth, 42% expect flat or declining margins.

Against this backdrop, European companies are taking a cautious approach to investing and risk-taking, with scenario analysis and impact assessment of different risks being the most widely used uncertainty management tools (applied by 51% of companies). At the same time, cost reduction has become one of the top three strategic priorities across all countries surveyed for the first time in the survey’s history.

However, CFOs are not abandoning growth targets, but rather adapting their development strategies, the survey shows. Organic growth expectations have fallen to 45%, their lowest level outside the pandemic period and significantly below the 83% peak recorded in spring 2024. In contrast, expansion in existing markets has risen to 45%, the highest level since spring 2022, suggesting that organizations prefer strengthening their position in current markets, rather than entering new markets.

"The survey findings show that European CFOs are not reacting to current uncertainties by blocking investments or postponing strategic decisions, but by adopting a more cautious and selective approach. Currently, the focus is on protecting margins, reducing risk exposure and building organizational resilience. At the same time, high-performing companies are looking beyond tactical cost-cutting measures and investing in transforming operational models, automation and more robust supply chains. This combination of financial discipline and productivity-oriented investments can create the premises for sustainable profitability and accelerated growth when the economic context becomes clearer," said Zeno Căprariu, Audit Partner, Deloitte Romania, and Leader of the CFO Program in Romania.

The employment outlook reflects the same cautious trend, with more than 40% of CFOs expecting that the workforce will remain stable. According to the survey, organizations are placing an increasing emphasis on productivity and operational efficiency, at the expense of the accelerated expansion of the workforce.

According to the survey, European companies are pursuing three main strategic directions: building more resilient operating models through automation and digital transformation, focusing on growth opportunities in markets where they are already present, and selective investments in technologies and capabilities that can support profitability in the medium and long term.

The Deloitte European CFO Survey Spring 2026 was conducted between March and April 2026 and is based on responses from more than 1,100 CFOs from Austria, Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.