No. 1 Singapore

Munshi Ahmed/Bloomberg

No. 1 Singapore

Change Since 2009 Ranking: +2
Real GDP Growth, 2009: –2.0 percent
Per Capita GDP, 2009: $46,863

World Competitiveness Rankings:

Economic Performance: 5
Government Efficiency: 2
Business Efficiency: 1
Infrastructure: 11

Singapore jumped two spots in this year's ranking to become—for the first time—the world's most competitive country. The Asian financial powerhouse not only has highly sophisticated capital markets, but routinely finishes on top in measures of government and business efficiency. IMD says that for Singapore to maintain its edge the city-state must deepen its connections to Asia Pacific's emerging economies to take better advantage of strong economic growth throughout the region.