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BCN-48
WORLD-ECONOMIC-FORUM-PERFORMING
Economies performing openness tend to perform well: WEF report
GENEVA, Oct. 18, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – The World Economic Forum (WEF) said
in its Global Competitiveness Report published on Wednesday that economies
performing in indicators that denote openness tend to perform well in terms
of innovation and market efficiency.
The WEF report, which, it says, aims to help policy-makers, business
leaders and other global stakeholders shape their economic strategies in the
era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, elaborates on openness as low tariff
and non-tariff barriers, ease of hiring foreign labor and collaboration in
patent application among others.
At a time of escalating trade tensions and a backlash against
globalization, the report reveals the importance of openness for
competitiveness.
The 2018 report uses a new methodology to capture the dynamics of the
global economy in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which is marked by
emerging technology breakthroughs.
But the report warned of challenges for governments and businesses brought
by changes to economic competitiveness in a world increasingly transformed by
new, digital technologies.
Governments and businesses risk facing a negative impact on growth and
productivity, warned the WEF report.
Under the new framework for competitiveness, the U.S. economy is the
closest to the “competitiveness frontier,” followed by Singapore, Germany,
Switzerland, and Japan.
Switzerland lost its top spot to the United States with the ranking based
on different methodology, which includes idea generation, entrepreneurial
culture, openness, and agility.
“Of the BRICS (Brazil, Russian, India, China, and South Africa) grouping
of large emerging markets, China is the most competitive, ranking 28 in the
Global Competitiveness Index with a score of 72.6. It is followed by Russia
which is ranked 43,” says the WEF report. These are the only two in the top
50.
China’s innovation score (64.4) is similar to Italy’s (65.8), not far from
Australia’s (69.8), and more than 10 points above India’s (53.8) and Russia’s
(50.7), says the report.
“I foresee a new global divide between countries who understand innovative
transformations and those that don’t. Only those economies that recognize the
importance of the Fourth Industrial Revolution will be able to expand
opportunities for their people,” said Klaus Schwab, WEF Founder, and
Executive Chairman.
“Competitiveness is neither a competition nor a zero-sum game — all
countries can become more prosperous,” said Saadia Zahidi, Member of the
Managing Board and Head of the Center for the New Economy and Society.
BSS/XINHUA/HR/1455