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Strategies & Market Trends : Asia Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stitch who wrote (3215)	4/21/1998 8:45:00 PM
From: Bonnie Bear	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 9980

Hell-o, anybody watching Japan crumbling tonight? I do not like what I see...

To: Stitch who wrote (3215)	4/22/1998 11:53:00 AM
From: Worswick	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 9980

For Private Use Only (C) SCMP South China Morning Post Internet Edition -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday April 22 1998 Japan falls in global rankings ASSOCIATED PRESS in Lausanne Japan plunged down the league table of the world's most competitive nations this year, according to a survey released yesterday. Japan's nine-rung drop in the World Competitive Yearbook annual rankings to 18th reflects the "complete disarray" of the Japanese economy, the report said. The country was in second position only five years ago. Singapore and Hong Kong held second and third places this year, as they did last year. Singapore "has been less affected than its neighbours by the Asian crisis" but will be affected by the region's general slowdown, said Professor Stephane Garelli of the yearbook's Lausanne-based publishers, the International Institute for Management Development. The United States held on to its number one place thanks to free market policies such as privatisation and a flexible labour market, the survey said. "The United States is strongly installed in its position as the most competitive nation in the world," Prof Garelli said. "Only a major crash in the stock market or, in the long term, complacency, could threaten a situation which is historically exceptional." The study compares the competitiveness of 46 countries by measuring economic strength, the domestic economy's openness to international trade, government policies, financial services, infrastructure, management, science and technology, education and training. It defines national competitiveness as a country's ability to help keep businesses competitive. China jumped to 24th from 27th place. Economic efficiency and reforming the role of the state "now seem to be a priority" for the Chinese, he said. "Ireland continues to be the Tiger of Europe," Prof Garelli said. Policies that have generated "staggering" growth helped propel the country up the table to 11th from 15th position, the report said. Britain fell to 12th from 11th place. Germany retained the 14th place it held last year. Switzerland remained in seventh position. France dropped two places in the rankings to 21st from 19th. The country still has a substantial public sector and high unemployment, but is making "good progress in opening its economy to international markets," Prof Garelli said. The Netherlands climbed to fourth from sixth place and its neighbour Luxembourg also improved, moving to ninth from 12th. Russia remained at the bottom of the table in 46th place.