Happy New Year! Bring on 2025

Five charts to start your day

The Countries Most Optimistic About 2025

Happy New Year! I hope 2025 will bring you health and wealth, and the start of many new great things to come. I'm quite happy to usher in the New Year. There is a certain ring to the year 2025. But it also reminds me, that life is short and I am getting older. So we must make the best of what we have while we are on this earth. Let's hope that this year will see the end of wars and the dawn of progress for humanity.

Now back to the charts!

According to a recent Ipsos survey of 33 countries, 71 percent of people think 2025 will be better than 2024. Indonesia claims the top spot – fully 90 percent of Indonesians feel 2025 will be an improvement. They’re upbeat about physical and mental health, as well as new tech like AI and its potential to create jobs.

On the other side of the spectrum, Japan stands out as the least optimistic country surveyed, with 63 percent disagreeing that 2025 will surpass 2024. Fewer than 40 percent of Japanese respondents see better mental health ahead, and less than 30 percent expect a stronger global economy next year.