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South Korea ranked 31st among 55 economies in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2008, published by the Institute for Management Development in Switzerland on Wednesday, a two-notch slide from last year.
The U.S. ranked top this year for the second consecutive year, followed by Singapore, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
Before the Roh Moo-hyun administration took power, in 2002, Korea had already ranked 29th. The country went up and down during Roh's five-year term, dropping to 32nd in 2003, then rising to 31st in 2004 and 27th in 2005, then down again to 32nd in 2006 and up to 29th last year.
In Asia, Korea was behind Taiwan (13th), China (15th), Malaysia (19th), Japan (22nd), Thailand (28th) and India (29th).
In the four categories, Korea did better than last year in economic performance (from 49th to 47th place) and in business efficiency (from 38th to 36th). The country fell six notches to 37th place in government efficiency, which contributed most to the decline in its overall ranking. It also slid two notches in infrastructure -- the competitiveness factor that analyzes performances in research and development and education -- to 21st.
In business legislation, a sub-factor in government efficiency that analyzes businesspeople's views, Korea fell 12 notches from last year to 50th, landing among the bottom nations. This suggests that despite the Lee Myung-bak administration's corporate deregulation efforts, businessmen still see red tape as a hindrance to investment.
An official with the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said, "Korea's ranking in competitiveness fell mainly because it ranks lower than last year in the government regulation category, including regulation intensity, labor regulations, and competition legislation."
Besides, South Korea has weak competitiveness in international investment (50th), prices (52nd), and social framework (53rd). In contrast, it has relatively strong competitiveness in employment (15th), public finance (18th), and scientific infrastructure (fourth).
Two-thirds of the IMD's analysis of global competitiveness was based on data from 2007 and the one-third based on a survey conducted this year.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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