U.S.-Iran war: Growing risk for the global footwear industry
In the latest report prepared and distributed by the Portuguese portal WORLDFOOTWEAR, specialized in the footwear and manufactured goods industries, based on a survey conducted among leaders, executives, manufacturers and sector experts from different countries, several interesting conclusions were reached.
Focusing on the conflict between the United States and Iran, the World Survey questionnaire addressed the different impacts and variables that could influence the sector.
When asked about the likelihood that the conflict between the United States and Iran could have a significant negative impact on the footwear sector in their country in 2026, 44.4% of respondents rated it as high or very high. Another 30.6% rated it as moderate, suggesting that nearly three quarters of the industry expect at least some degree of disruption.
By contrast, only around one quarter of respondents considered the risk to be low or very low. This distribution highlights a clear shift in perception: geopolitical instability is no longer a distant or abstract concern, but a concrete business risk influencing expectations across the sector.
Overall, the balance between pessimistic views -high and very high- and optimistic views -low and very low- stands at +19 percentage points, confirming a negative trend in sector sentiment. However, this concern is not evenly distributed geographically.
Risk perception intensifies significantly in Western markets. In North America, the balance between expectations of high and low impact reaches 50 percentage points, while in Europe it stands at 44 points. This suggests that companies operating in these regions, or supplying products to them, feel particularly vulnerable to geopolitical crises linked to the conflict.
Several factors may explain this greater sensitivity, including higher exposure to global financial volatility, dependence on complex international supply chains and closer alignment with the dynamics of U.S. foreign policy. By contrast, other regions show mixed or moderate expectations, reflecting different levels of exposure and resilience.
Source: worldfootwear.com
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