IMD World Competitiveness Booklet 2023

The Netherlands moves one place up to fifth, which results from its improve ments in economic performance (11 th ) and business efficiency (second), and its continued robust performance in infrastructure (fifth). The Netherlands improves in several sub-factors including domestic economy (19 th ), international investment (13 th ), public finance (10 th ), and productivity and efficiency (fourth), reaching the top position in technolog ical infrastructure. It makes significant progress in indicators such as portfolio investment liabilities (10 th ), labor force growth (11 th ), and real GDP growth (19 th ). There are also strong performances in cyber security (12 th ) and in the awareness of companies about changing market conditions (14 th ). Other advances at the indicator level include employment growth (26 th ), the impact of central bank policy on economic development (20 th ), females in parliament (16 th ), the efficient use of digital tools and technologies by the private sector (third), the implementation of apprenticeships (fourth), and whether scientific research legislation encourages innovation (fourth). However, the country witnesses a decline in several indica tors including current account balance (14 th ), attitudes toward globalization (11 th ), youth unemployment (19 th ), sustainable development goals (16 th ), quality of air transportation (sixth), and the quality of primary school education as measured by the pupil-teacher ratio (43 rd ). It drops five places in each of these indicators. Furthermore, the results highlight the Netherlands’ decline in economic and social reforms (15 th ), transparency (18 th ), social cohesion (22 nd ), skilled labor (25 th ), social responsibility (18 th ), and corporate boards’ fulfillment of their duties (11 th ); in all these indicators, it has fallen by either seven or eight places since last year. Taiwan, China secures a strong sixth place in the overall competitiveness ranking, an increase of one position. This is due to its performance in the business efficiency factor (fourth), in government efficiency (sixth), and in the infrastructure

factor (12 th ). Taiwan performs well in several sub-factors such as public finance (sixth), tax policy (seventh), productivity and efficiency (seventh), management practices (third), and scientific infrastruc ture (fifth). It makes significant progress in several indicators, including exchange rate stability (ninth), government budget surplus/deficit (ninth), and women with degrees (eighth). It also makes strides in energy intensity (33 rd ), competition legislation (20 th ), and internet bandwidth speed (13 th ). Taiwan also reaches the top 10 in several indicators, including consumer price infla tion (seventh) and government subsidies (10 th ). It improves in digital transforma tion in companies (seventh), portfolio investment assets (12 th ), quality of life (21 st ), and the efficiency of the distribu tion infrastructure (11 th ). However, in the economic performance factor, Taiwan drops to the 20 th spot (from 11 th ). At the indicator level, it declines in several areas related to the perceptions of executives, including bribery and corruption (28 th from 23 rd ), social cohesion (29 th from 24 th ), the availability of competent senior managers (26 th from 21 st ), central bank policy (16 th from 11 th ), the efficiency of large corpora tions (14 th from eighth), the effectiveness of university education (20 th from 14 th ), and the availability of finance skills (20 th from 14 th ). It also drops in women in manage ment (42 nd from 31 st ) and current account balance (eighth from third). Overall, Hong Kong SAR ranks seventh, which represents a drop of two positions. This decline is mainly the result of a sharp drop in the domestic economy (56 th ) and employment (45 th ). Nevertheless, Hong Kong SAR ranks second in the government efficiency factor, 11 th in the business effi ciency factor, and in 13 th the infrastructure factor. However, it only reaches the 36 th spot in the economic performance factor. Its performance remains strong in several sub-factors including international trade (fifth), International investment (third), tax policy (third), business legislation

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