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Finland Tops World Competitiveness Rankings
Finland remains the most competitive economy in the world and tops the rankings for the second consecutive year in The Global Competitiveness Report 2004-2005, released earlier this month by the World Economic Forum (WEF). The U.S. is in second position, followed by Sweden, Taiwan, Denmark and Norway, respectively.
The rankings are drawn from the results of the Executive Opinion Survey, a comprehensive survey conducted by WEF that polled more than 8,700 business leaders in 104 economies worldwide. The survey questionnaire is designed to capture those factors affecting an economy’s business environment that are key determinants of sustained economic growth. Particular attention is placed on elements of the macroeconomic environment, the quality of public institutions underpinning the development process, and the level of technological readiness and innovation.
Finland holds the top spot in the Growth Competitiveness Index rankings for the third time in the last four years. The country is very well managed at the macroeconomic level, the WEF report states, but it also scores high in those measures that assess the quality of its public institutions. In addition, its private sector is said to have a high proclivity for adopting new technologies and nurturing a culture of innovation.
Like Finland, the U.S. also held onto its same ranking for the second consecutive year. WEF contends the nation's overall technological supremacy is partly offset by a weaker performance in those areas that capture the quality of its public institutions and the stability of the macroeconomic environment.
The 2004 WEF report includes detailed country profiles for each of the 104 economies featured in it. In addition, the report contains various studies addressing different aspects of competitiveness and data tables with global rankings on more than 100 indicators.
The nonprofit WEF is comprised of business, political, intellectual and other leaders. An executive summary of The Global Competitiveness Report and other backgrounders are available at http://www.weforum.org/gcp. The full report is available for purchase from the publisher at http://www.palgrave.com/worldeconomicforum.