Cyprus ranks 40th in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2008

Cyprus ranks 40th in the Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009, in regards of the competitiveness of its Economy, improving by 15 places compared to the Report for 2007.

The results of the Report were presented here today in an event organized by the World Economic Forum, the Cyprus Development Bank, the European University of Cyprus and the PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Analyzing the results of the Report, Jennifer Blanke, Senior Economist and Director of the Global Competitiveness Network, noted that the United States tops the overall ranking in the Global Competitiveness Report for 2008.

Switzerland is in second position followed by Denmark, Sweden and Singapore. European economies continue to prevail in the top 10 with Finland, Germany and the Netherlands following suit. The United Kingdom, while remaining very competitive, has dropped by 3 places and out of the top 10, mainly attributable to a weakening of its financial markets.

The United Kingdom, while remaining very competitive, has dropped by three places and out of the top 10, mainly attributable to a weakening of its financial markets. Greece is in the 67th position, and has dropped by two places compared to 2007.

The rankings are calculated from both publicly available data and the Executive Opinion Survey, a comprehensive annual survey conducted by the World Economic Forum together with its network of Partner Institutes (leading research institutes and business organizations) in the countries covered by the report.

The GCI is based on 12 pillars of competitiveness, providing a comprehensive picture of the competitiveness landscape in countries around the world at all stages of development. The pillars include Institutions, Infrastructure, Macroeconomic Stability, Health and Primary Education, Higher Education and Training, Goods Market Efficiency, Labour Market Efficiency, Financial Market Sophistication, Technological Readiness, Market Size, Business Sophistication and Innovation. Cyprus managed to improve its ranking in all pillars.