Iran extended its growth in competitiveness by rising 7 places in the World Economic Forum’s rankings.

According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012, Iran rose 7 places in comparison to the last year report, reaching to the 62nd place among 142 countries. 

Iran’s rank in the report of the last year was 69 among 139 countries.

According to the report, Iran’s competitiveness score rose from 4.1 in the last year to 4.3 in the current year. 

World Economic Forum ranks countries Competitiveness score between 1 (the worst) and 7 (the best) point.

The report -- published each year by the organizers of the annual conference of business leaders, politicians and entertainers in Davos, Switzerland -- is based on measures of competitiveness and an opinion poll of more than 14,000 business leaders.

 

According to the report, the U.S. extended its slide in competitiveness for a third year by slipping to fifth in the World Economic Forum’s rankings, which Switzerland topped.

The U.S. fell one place, two years after losing the No. 1 position for the first time since the Geneva-based organization began its current index in 2004. Concern about public debt and deteriorating confidence in policy makers hurt the efficiency of the world’s largest economy even as faith in its financial industry rebounded, the forum said in its study of 142 nations.

Switzerland tops the overall rankings in The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012. Singapore overtakes Sweden for second position. Northern and Western European countries dominate the top 10 with Sweden (3rd), Finland (4th), Germany (6th), the Netherlands (7th), Denmark (8th) and the United Kingdom (10th). Japan remains the second-ranked Asian economy at 9th place, despite falling three places since last year. 

Germany maintains a strong position within the Eurozone, although it goes down one position to sixth place, while the Netherlands (7th) improves by one position in the rankings, France drops three places to 18th, and Greece continues its downward trend to 90th. Competitiveness-enhancing reforms will play a key role in revitalizing growth in the region and tackling its key challenges, fiscal consolidation and persistent unemployment.

The results show that while competitiveness in advanced economies has stagnated over the past seven years, in many emerging markets it has improved, placing their growth on a more stable footing and mirroring the shift in economic activity from advanced to emerging economies. 

The People’s Republic of China (26th) continues to lead the way among large developing economies, improving by one more place and solidifying its position among the top 30. Among the four other BRICS economies, South Africa (50th) and Brazil (53rd) move upwards while India (56th) and Russia (66th) experience small declines. Several Asian economies perform strongly, with Japan (9th) and Hong Kong SAR (11th) also in the top 20.

The report also suggested emerging markets are catching up with their richer counterparts. China climbed one level to 26th and Brazil rose to 53rd from 58th while India fell five slots to 56th and Russia dropped to 66th from 63rd.

“You’re seeing a convergence by the emerging economies in terms of competitiveness,” Blanke said.

The U.S. ranked 89th for macroeconomic stability amid a record budget deficit, while running 50th for trust in its politicians, the forum said. The survey suggested its government wastes resources and regulation has become more burdensome. A gauge of financial-market development indicated improvement, with the U.S. rising to 22nd from 31st last year. It was ninth in 2008.

Switzerland, which is struggling to cope with a surging currency, was also hailed for its efficient labor market and transparent government. Its infrastructure and financial markets are also sound, the WEF said.

Among the other Group of Seven economies, France slipped three places to 18th in terms of competitiveness and Italy rose to 43rd from 48th. Of the European nations requiring bailouts, Ireland held 29th position, Portugal advanced one slot to 45th and Greece dropped to 90th from 83rd.

In Latin America, Chile was the highest-ranked country at 31st and South Africa, 50th, was the best performer in its region. In the Middle East, Qatar was the strongest nation, at 14th. Chad was again ranked bottom of all the countries studied.