Executive Summary
The infrastructure services market continues to push forward. The last decade or so has seen a sustained period of growth propelled by the explosion of hyperscale cloud infrastructure. But the outlook for 2020 is less clear than it has been for quite a few years. There is a possible economic slowdown looming, exacerbated by the coronavirus outbreak, and the hyperscale cloud surge is showing its first signs of slowing.
As always, there are moving parts bubbling under the surface. Hyperscale infrastructure strategies are shifting, global markets are more of a factor and regulatory regimes are changing. All of this comes with both good and bad for infrastructure providers. It presents challenges, but as is often the case, also introduces a number of emerging opportunities.
Somewhat paradoxically, alongside the developing uncertainty, is a strengthening foundation that is locked in place. The underlying fundamentals of the sector are strong and show no signs of moving in anything but a forward direction. And the nature of the business itself, with value and margin moving into new areas, is uniquely positioned to withstand shifts in the larger macroeconomic environment and competitive landscape.
This report takes a closer look at the sector’s outlook as we enter 2020. We remain bullish on many pockets of the sector, but there are areas that demand some caution. Some or many of these questions will play out in 2020, while others will probably take a bit more time and take us beyond 2020. However, the inflection point reached remains in full effect.
