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SWITZERLAND CONTINUES TO RANK HIGH
IN KEY BUSINESS INDICATORS
New York, October 14 – Switzerland, with a population of approximately 7.5 million, continues to achieve high rankings in business indicators supporting foreign direct investment decisions, reports Mario Brossi, North American senior representative for Switzerland Trade and Investment Promotion.
Among the most recent is the 2008-
Switzerland ranks 2nd in Europe in the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom published by The Heritage Foundation/The Wall Street Journal and 3rd in Europe in the inaugural WEF Financial Development Index. “The FDI, a comprehensive analysis of financial systems and capital markets in 52 countries, focuses on key drivers of financial system development and economic growth in developing and developed countries,” Mr. Brossi explained.
The country jumped two places to fourth after the U.S., Singapore and Hong Kong in the 2008 World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) published by the Institute of Management Development. “The WCY is one of most comprehensive annual reports on the competitiveness of nations, ranking and analyzing how a nation’s environment creates and sustains the competitiveness of enterprises,” Mr. Brossi stated.
In terms of innovation, the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) names Switzerland as the European country that has filed the most patents in the three leading patent offices around the globe – the U.S., the European Union and Japan. “In this report the Swiss scoreboard was 106.7 patents filed per million inhabitants,” Mr. Brossi said. Swiss industry has 6.1 full time researchers per 1,000 employees.
Transparency International’s 2008 Corruption Perception Index ranks 180 countries by their perceived levels of corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys. The report shows Switzerland and Finland scoring 9.0 out of a possible 10 while Denmark and Sweden tied at 9.3, the highest scores reported.
In a survey of European tax systems compiled by KPMG International in which major business organizations across Europe assessed the attractiveness of their domestic tax systems, Switzerland ranks third behind Cyprus and Ireland. The survey is based on particular aspects of the tax system, including consistency, stability over time, volume of legislation, the tax rate, and relationships with tax authorities.
“Switzerland also scores high in softer but no less important rankings when it comes to selecting an FDI destination,” Mr. Brossi said. “For example, it tops the global list of countries ranked by environmental performance, according to the 2008 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) produced by a team of environmental experts at Yale University and Columbia University.“ The 2008 EPI, released at the World Economic Forum in Davos, ranks 149 countries on 25 indicators tracked across six established policy categories.
Similarly, for the 7th consecutive year Zurich ranks first in the Mercer Human Resources 2008 Quality of Living Survey of 215 cities. Geneva ties with Vienna for 2nd place; Berne the capital ranks No. 9. New York City is the index at 100 and ranked 49th.
A final lifestyle example is the Global Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2008 ranking countries on their international travel and tourism standings. The 2008 report by the World Economic Forum in conjunction with global management consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton places Switzerland first, followed by Austria, Germany, Australia, Spain and Great Britain.
News from Location Promotion Switzerland
