Fortune 500 companies are facing a reckoning, as the traditional playbook of scale, efficiency, and seamless global integration falters as the world drifts away from globalization.
There’s “incredibly high stakes” on the geopolitical front heading into 2026, James Crabtree, distinguished visiting fellow on the European Council on Foreign Relations, said on Monday during the Fortune Innovation Forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Despite the “shaky truce” between U.S. President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping agreed last month, the landscape is still littered with “unexploded ordinance,” he warned.
The China-U.S. rivalry creates both opportunities and risks for Southeast Asia. The region has long tried to stay relatively neutral in superpower conflict, yet worsening tensions between Washington and Beijing could lead to pressure to pick a side.
But “it’s not about making a choice, it’s about navigating the opportunities,” said Dato’ Siobhan Das, chief executive officer of the American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce. While Southeast Asia has long succeeded by offering a growth-friendly ecosystem for multinational companies, the region must cultivate new competitive advantages to meet shifting global dynamics.
