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SassyLady
09-09-2010, 11:59 PM
Creating jobs .... and not government jobs .... is what we need to get back in the top spot.



US loses ground in competitiveness report
By JOE McDONALD (AP) – 19 hours ago

BEIJING — The U.S. has slipped down the ranks of competitive economies, falling behind Sweden and Singapore due to huge deficits and pessimism about government, a global economic group said Thursday.
Switzerland retained the top spot for the second year in the annual ranking by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum. It combines economic data and a survey of more than 13,500 business executives.
Sweden moved up to second place while Singapore stayed at No. 3. The United States was in second place last year after falling from No. 1 in 2008.
The WEF praised the United States for its innovative companies, excellent universities and flexible labor market. But it also cited huge deficits, rising government debt and declining public faith in politicians and corporate ethics.
"There has been a weakening of the United States' public and private institutions, as well as lingering concerns about the state of its financial markets," the group said.
Mapping a clear strategy for exiting the huge U.S. stimulus "will be an important step in reinforcing the country's competitiveness," it said.
The report was released in Beijing ahead of a WEF-organized gathering of global business executives next week in neighboring Tianjin. The group is best known for its annual Davos meeting of corporate leaders.
The report ranks 139 countries by assessing business efficiency, innovation, financial markets, health, education, institutions, infrastructure and other factors.
The United States was followed by Germany, Japan, Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark and Canada.
Switzerland held its top rank due to its strong innovation, evenhanded regulation and one of the world's most stable economic environments.
The WEF cited education and regulation as key areas for improvement in a number of economies and warned leaders not to lose sight of long-term needs as they struggle with the global crisis.
"For economies to remain competitive, they must ensure that they have in place those factors driving the productivity enhancements on which their present and future prosperity is built," one of the report's co-authors, Columbia University economist Xavier Sala-i-Martin, said in a statement.
China performed best among major developing economies, rising two places from last year to 27th based on its large and growing market, economic stability and increasing sophistication of its businesses.
Japan gained two places, helped by strong innovative abilities, though its status was hurt by the country's two-decade-old financial malaise.
Greece plunged 12 places to 83rd, plagued by a debt crisis and mounting public concern about corruption and government inefficiency, according to the WEF.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5geQsDi67zuA4fPHVF4EotRXVMoEgD9I4A8O00
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DragonStryk72
09-10-2010, 12:40 AM
Ah yes, but competition means someone wins, and others lose, so right now, it's not something people want to hear.

SassyLady
09-10-2010, 01:14 AM
Ah yes, but competition means someone wins, and others lose, so right now, it's not something people want to hear.

Well, I'm pretty competitive and believe winning and losing are life lessons.

When I was in high school I learned a very valuable lesson about life. My tennis teacher would have each of us play with a student that was at least a year ahead of us. She said that playing with more experienced players would raise our skill level. And, if we always played with those of the same skill level we probably would never get any better.

So I learned that if you want to get better at something, compete with someone at a higher level.....which means you'll lose most of the time, but you will be improving each time you play.

I think losing also teaches one how to handle adversity and how to get up and keep going no matter what.

Kathianne
09-10-2010, 07:04 AM
Hey, it's a European model for ranking, which is fine. I have to laugh though at the weirdness about deficits and spending, then woe is us, people don't trust the government.

The Swedes certainly do trust government, they damn well better. Switzerland is really a mix of private and government, but as a whole really can't compare either with US or even Germany/GB with diversity. Very homogenous with little poverty.

Noir
09-10-2010, 07:30 AM
The UK moved up once place to 12th, not really sure if I should be pleased about that xD

Gaffer
09-10-2010, 08:04 AM
How dare they do they. That is like keeping score at a soccer game or baseball game. People might get their feelings hurt. :laugh:

PostmodernProphet
09-12-2010, 06:26 AM
I'm confused......Switzerland?......competitive economies?........do they even make the best chocolate any more?......

what are the standards that were used to rank economies?.....

ah, here's the key....

Mapping a clear strategy for exiting the huge U.S. stimulus "will be an important step in reinforcing the country's competitiveness," it said.

see?...nobody in the world except American liberals think this was a good idea......