Rising geopolitical tensions are pushing countries and enterprises toward sovereign cloud, AI, and infrastructure solutions. China and the US dominate the global technology market and achieve the highest levels of tech sovereignty, while Europe lags behind. Nations can only achieve tech sovereignty when they have the agency to develop and deploy models that use infrastructure, data, and talent independently of foreign governments’ decisions and influences. Over the next five years, sovereignty will improve only gradually, forcing midsize nations to manage gaps through alliances, partnerships, open technologies, and selective investments, rather than achieving full self-sufficiency.

Europe’s economy stabilized in 2025 after overcoming energy, inflation, and trade shocks following the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the war in the Middle East has increased uncertainty in 2026, with oil price shocks remaining a key headwind to economic growth amid weaker global trade and heightened geopolitical risk. Forrester recommends that business and IT leaders in Europe boost investments for economic and technology sovereignty by rationalizing technology portfolios, diversifying supply chains, and adopting minimum viable sovereignty.

Asia Pacific (APAC) will add $437 billion in tech spending by 2030, but cost inflation will define the real value of that growth. CIOs must cut through headline numbers to see where demand is expanding, where regulatory and geopolitical shifts will redirect investment, and where macroeconomic uncertainty will slow transformation. Escalating software prices, volatile hardware markets, and sovereignty‑driven infrastructure duplication are eroding purchasing power and reshaping technology economics across the region. This report gives CIOs the country‑level forecasts, category trends, and strategic context they need to place disciplined, high‑impact tech bets in APAC’s rapidly evolving landscape.

Forrester expects US financial services tech budgets, including staff costs, to reach $495 billion in 2026, up from $449 billion in 2025, representing 10.3% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Financial services tech will make up 17.1% of US total tech spending in 2026. This report provides technology spending priorities, initiatives, and budget outlook for the US financial services industry in 2026.

Forrester expects US healthcare providers’ technology budgets, including staff costs, to reach $69 billion in 2026, up from $64 billion in 2025, representing 7.6% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Healthcare providers’ tech spending will make up 2.4% of US total tech budget spending in 2026. This report provides technology spending priorities, initiatives, and budget outlook for US healthcare providers in 2026.

Forrester expects the tech budget, including staff costs, for the entire government sector in the US to reach $357 billion in 2026, representing 4% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Government tech will represent 12.3% of US total tech spending in 2026. This report provides technology spending priorities, initiatives, and budget outlook for the entire government sector in the US — including federal, state, and local — in 2026.

Forrester expects US retail tech budgets, including staff costs, to reach $113 billion in 2026, up from $106 billion in 2025, representing 6.6% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Retail tech will make up 3.9% of US total tech spending in 2026. This report provides technology spending priorities, initiatives, and budget outlook for the US retail industry.

This report analyzes the performance of the US economy in 2025 and provides Forrester’s outlook for 2026. The US economy performed better than consensus expectations in 2025, despite tariff-related uncertainty. Key US macroeconomic indicators remained stable and broadly in line with historical averages. While there are fewer headwinds for the US economy heading into 2026, several risks remain. Business and IT leaders must remain agile and adaptive to evolving economic signals.

Forrester expects US insurance technology budgets, including staff costs, to reach $173 billion in 2026, up from $160 billion in 2025, representing 7.8% year-over-year (YOY) growth. Insurance tech will make up 6% of US total tech spending in 2026. This report provides technology spending priorities, initiatives, and budget outlook for the US insurance industry in 2026.

In 2030, total retail sales in the Europe-5 economies — France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK — will reach €2.8 trillion. Consumers in the Europe-5 countries will spend €586 billion on online purchases in 2030, and this will account for nearly 21% of total retail sales in these five markets. This report provides a five-year forecast for total retail sales, e-commerce sales, and e-commerce penetration of 22 product categories for each of the Europe-5 economies.