First published in 1989, the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) analyzes and ranks countries [1] according to how they manage their competencies to achieve long-term value creation. An economy’s competitiveness cannot be reduced only to GDP and productivity because enterprises also have to cope with political, social and cultural dimensions. Governments therefore need to provide an environment characterized by efficient infrastructures, institutions, and policies that encourage sustainable value creation by enterprises. Denmark, Ireland and Switzerland have been named the top three among 64 economies measured for their global competitiveness in the 2023 IMD World Competitiveness Ranking. Denmark maintained its grip on first place from last year, when it enjoyed a momentous inaugural rise to the top, Ireland made a remarkable leap from 11th to take second place, and Switzerland held its nerve in third, after dropping from second place in 2022 and first place in 2021. All three are small economies that make good use of their access to markets and trading partners – as does Singapore, which came fourth. Denmark’s top position is based on its continuous achievements across all four competitiveness factors measured. It remains first in business efficiency and second in infrastructure, and shows slightly improved results in government efficiency, going to fifth from sixth. Christos Cabolis, the WCC’s Chief Economist, explained, “Navigating today’s unpredictable environment requires agility and adaptability. Countries which excel are building resilient economies, such as Ireland, Iceland, and Bahrain. Their governments are also able to adapt policies based on current economic conditions in a timely fashion. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Singapore are also key examples of this.” As regards the other Nordic countries, they all enjoy strong positions as Sweden is 8th, Finland 11th, Norway 14th and Iceland 16th.
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[1] The Yearbook provides extensive coverage of 64 economies, chosen based on the availability of comparable international statistics
