Improved ranking for Holland in WEF Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012

The Netherlands' competitive position has improved once again. In the World Economic Forum's (WEF) new ranking of most competitive economies in the world the Netherlands rose to the seventh position, one up from last year.

"The indicators clearly show that the Netherlands is progressively moving to a high-quality knowledge economy", says professor Henk Volberda, Chair and Scientific Director at knowledge institute INSCOPE, which collects the Dutch data for the WEF.

According to Volberda, the Dutch economy's strong competitiveness is a reflection of our real economy and inspires a lot of confidence for future growth. The rise from eighth to seventh position in times of great uncertainty may be seen as "an exceptional performance".

About the WEF Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012

The Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012, comes out amid multiple challenges to the global economy and a continuing shift in the balance of economic activity away from advanced economies and toward emerging markets. Policymakers are struggling to find ways to manage the present economic challenges while preparing their economies to perform well in an increasingly complex global landscape and the report offers a unique tool in addressing some key issues.

This year’s report findings show that Switzerland tops the overall rankings. 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.

Source: Nu.nl, 7 September 2011& WEF website

More information: WEF Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012