Posted on 09/09/2010 8:50:31 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
The World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report finds the United States has fallen to fourth position behind top-ranked Switzerland, Sweden and Singapore in its competitiveness rankings of 139 countries. The report notes China has moved up in the rankings and sub-Saharan African countries continue to hold the bottom.
The report finds the recent economic crisis is having an impact on its competitiveness rankings. It notes the United States is continuing its decline. After being toppled from first to second position last year, it now has fallen two more places to fourth position.
Despite this, co-author of the Global Competitiveness Report, Thierry Geiger, tells VOA the United States is still among the most competitive economies in the world. And this he says is because the United States remains strong in areas, such as innovation, business sophistication, education and infrastructure.
"Now we see a deterioration in the situation of some macro-economic indicators, including obviously the government budget," said Geiger. "The budget deficit is deepening, the debt level is also rising. The financial market development category is one of the twelve pillars we capture. So, the situation there in the financial market and banking sector is still going down. The assessment is still deteriorating from last year."
The report finds the Nordic countries continue to be well positioned in the rankings, with Sweden, Finland and Denmark among the top 10. It says Germany leads the Euro-zone countries, moving up two places to fifth position. And, the United Kingdom, it says, has moved back up to 12th position after falling in the rankings over recent years.
The report notes China is becoming more competitive. Geiger says the country is making improvements in its financial and banking sectors, areas where it has been historically weak. He says this and other factors have boosted China from 29th to 27th place.
"This is quite remarkable given the level of development of China now," added Geiger. "It is still an emerging economy and now really it is almost at the level of many advanced economies. And, they are actually widening the gap with the other BRICs; namely, India, Russia, and Brazil, which are much lower in the rankings."
The report focuses on, what it calls, two interesting regional trends. It cites the strong, dynamic performances of Asian countries, including China, India, Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
The report notes several countries from the Middle East and North Africa region occupy the upper half of the rankings. It says most of the Gulf States are becoming more competitive because they are diversifying away from oil into other areas of economic pursuit.
In sub-Saharan Africa, 54th and 55th placed South Africa and Mauritius feature in the top half of the rankings. They are followed by Namibia, Botswana and Rwanda, who figure among the best performing countries in the lower half of the rankings.
But the report says Chad, Burundi and Malawi continue to be among the worst performing countries.
Remove registered Democrats, inact free enterprise and Fair tax, stomp RINOs....there fixed everything all at once.
we'll see where we are after the next 18 months.
Germany's growing at 8% because of demand that we would be meeting if we hadn't become f(ccking socialist banana republic since Nov 2008.
Here is the thing that concerns me when I looked under the hood of this report...
One of the factors that make a country competitive is PROPERTY RIGHTS. This study rates a country’s protection of property ownership, including financial assets.
Now get this :
THE USA IS RANKED #40 out of 139 COUNTRIES IN TERMS OF PROTECTING PROPERTY RIGHTS !!! THE ESSENCE OF OUR CAPITALISM IS DETERIORATING !!
Yes my friends, to quote Business Insider — You Know The US Is Screwed, When China, Gambia, And Jordan Have Better Property Rights !!
If you look under the hood of this report,
you’ll find serious deterioration in the factors and institutions that underpin our once healthy economy.
GO TO THIS LINK :
http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GlobalCompetitivenessReport_2010-11.pdf
Then go to page 366. You’ll be STUNNED at the country’s that rank AHEAD of the USA in terms of protecting property rights !
Here is the thing that concerns me when I looked under the hood of this report...
One of the factors that make a country competitive is PROPERTY RIGHTS. This study rates a country’s protection of property ownership, including financial assets.
Now get this :
THE USA IS RANKED #40 out of 139 COUNTRIES IN TERMS OF PROTECTING PROPERTY RIGHTS !!! THE ESSENCE OF OUR CAPITALISM IS DETERIORATING !!
Yes my friends, to quote Business Insider — You Know The US Is Screwed, When China, Gambia, And Jordan Have Better Property Rights !!
If you look under the hood of this report,
you’ll find serious deterioration in the factors and institutions that underpin our once healthy economy.
GO TO THIS LINK :
http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GlobalCompetitivenessReport_2010-11.pdf
Then go to page 366. You’ll be STUNNED at the country’s that rank AHEAD of the USA in terms of protecting property rights !
correction... jan 2007 is when they took over
gee, whatwith all the lawyers running around fighting for people’s rights, ya think we’d be on top. /s
China has the same thing as the US - a permanently entrenched political class who love the perks of private airplanes and motorcades and fancy buildings. The difference is, Chinese politicians understand that if they keep the economy humming along and continue to increase freedom, people will be happy. Glass half-full, grow the pie kind of thing. The US political class is, for the most part, completely opposite: half-empty, must take from you if anything good will happen to someone else.
An objective view of the situation, in fact would show the US is actually more "Communist" than China. If anything, they should be called the ChiCaps (Chinese Capitalists) and we should be called the AmeriComs (American Communists).
RE: my property is actually MORE MINE in China than it is in the US.
Surely you are not referring to property as in REAL ESTATE or A HOME. I assume you do not have Chinese citizenship and cannot own property there.
You must be referring to something else when you use the term — property.
Then tell me, when his skinhead, bloused-booted, badge heavy, legal thugs show up on your doorstep with an eviction notice and a SWAT team, who shoot you dog and your children as "a precaution" to protect themselves, who owns your home and property.
Hey Dems!!! Thanks !!!
“... in competitiveness rankings. It notes the United States is continuing its decline. After being toppled from first to second position last year, it now has fallen two more places to fourth position.”
Vote for whom?
Some of the reasons the US has fallen to 4th place ( we were I think #2 not too long ago ), are these pesky criteria -—
* SOUNDNESS OF BANKS ( The USA ranks at #111 of 139, below such countries as Lebanon, Turkey, Honduras, Mexico, Ghana, Ugana, Morocco, Bolivia and even Rwanda ). Read page 460 of the report.
* TOTAL TAX RATE ( The USA ranks #89 out of 139. Below our European rivals like UK, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg and even Germany. Heck, we’re now ranked below Canada ). Read page 432 of the report.
Edit to Add : TOTAL TAX RATE is defined as a combination of profit tax (% of profits), labor tax and contributions (% of profits) and other taxes (% of profits).
SOUNDNESS OF BANKS asseses the need for government bailouts in order to prevent insolvency.
Also, on the criteria of BUSINESS COSTS OF CRIME AND VIOLENCE, the USA ranks at a pitiful #84 out of 139.
Syria, Oman, Qatar, UAE, Tunisia and Rwanda rank as the top 6 on this list. Go Figure.
If it were not for the pitiful showing we have on these criteria, we would not have dropped to #4.
Actually, I am. I own a condo in Minhang district of Shanghai, have for about 2 years now.
I assume you do not have Chinese citizenship and cannot own property there.
Nope, still a US Citizen. Your information is incorrect; foreign ownership - up to and including 100% - of property and companies is perfectly fine in China. That exclusion was dropped about 5-6 years ago...
And I don't have to pay property tax every year; it was a one-time 1.5% fee at the time I purchased my place. After that - no taxes.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.