Leaders beware: 10 crises that could break the world in 2026

Here are the most consequential breakdowns every strategic leader must understand—before it's too late!

❶ Financial Crisis II
The US economy sits on a powder keg. Stock markets are wildly overinflated, 40% of GDP growth & 80% of stock gains stem from AI hype with little real productivity. Shadow banks are back—and bigger. Middle-class demand collapses. Tariffs fuel inflation. A $35T crash is plausible—this time neither China nor G20 will bail out.

❷ The End of Global Order
The post-1945 system disintegrates as US abandons UN, COP30, WHO. Russia and China build alternative institutions to undermine Western power and de-dollarise. Crises multiply while coordination disappears.

❸ US Threats to Latin America
Trump invades Venezuela, sanctions Colombia and Cuba, and cuts stabilising migration aid. Meanwhile China offers real development: trade jumped from $12B to $315B in 20 years, headed past $700B. The region is shifting east while the US gets bogged down in lawless military adventures.

❹ Nuclear Arms Race Returns
Arms-control collapses. US, Russia, China expand tactical & strategic systems; Cyber vulnerabilities make false alarms increasingly likely. South Korea and Japan openly debate nuclearisation. Russia threatens atom-bombing Ukraine.

❺ Youth Uprising
Nearly 900 million young Africans face unemployment, crushing debt, and no electricity. Gen Z protesters have already toppled governments in Bangladesh, Madagascar, and Nepal. The revolutions are onlyh beginning.

❻ Putin Defeats Ukraine
Russia advances; Europe lacks munitions, Trump blocks US support. Peace talks become charades where Trump pressures Kyiv to surrender. Without serious turnaround, Ukraine will lose Donbas, NATO will be humiliated, and Putin will gain power.

❼ Climate Action Collapses
Trump calls climate change a “con job,” exits Paris again, bullies others to follow. Rich nations delay $120bn in pledged climate aid to poor nations. Meanwhile, China now builds 74% of global renewables; 70% chance that 2025–29 breaches 1.5°C; droughts, floods, and heat devastate the Global South.

❽ Middle East Explodes
Gaza is partitioned. 90% of homes lie in rubble. Hamas reconstitutes. Israeli is warmongering in West Bank, Lebanon, Syria. Iran's economy collapses. A regional war is again increasingly likely.

❾ Dot-com bubble 2.0
Big Tech invested $400B in AI in 2024, heading for $1.1T by 2029 — financed by debt. OpenAI expects no profit until 2030. Electricity shortages idle datacenters. Meanwhile, AI is eliminating jobs faster than anyone predicted.

❿ South Asia Heads Toward War
India and Pakistan escalate after terrorist attacks. Pakistan’s generals are emboldened by Saudi & Trump. Modi looks weak. Kashmir, water disputes, terrorism, Afghanistan—all live triggers. Both countries have nukes.

🗣 Which of these crises are in your leadership focus? Reply with ❶–❿ and tell us why.