Illustration photoViet Nam made two steps forward to the 68th place in the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitive Index 2014-2015 Rankings, according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2014 – 2015.
In Southeast Asia, Viet Nam ranked6th after Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Up two positions, Viet Nam ranks 68th with a performance almost unchanged from last year.
Following an episode of double-digit inflation in 2011, its macro-economic situation continues to improve (75th, up 12 positions), as inflation declined to 6%.
Public institutions also receive a better assessment (85th, up five), on the basis of better property rights protection (104th, up nine), improved efficiency (91st, up 13), and a lower level of perceived corruption (109th, up seven).
Progress in this area occurs from a low base. The quality of transport and energy infrastructures also improves slightly (81st).
In a region where many countries have poorly functioning labor markets, Viet Nam earneda satisfactory 49th place,its best showing among the 12 pillars with the exception of the market size pillar (39th).
Viet Nam’s financial sector and its banks remain vulnerable. Technological readiness remains low (99th, up three). The country’s businesses are especially slow in adopting the latest technologies (118th), thus forfeiting significant productivity gains through technological transfer. The degree of business sophistication is low (106th, down eight) with companies typically operating toward the bottom of the value chain.
Since 2004, the report ranked the world's nations according to the Global Competitiveness Index.
The rankings consider 12 pillars of competitiveness including (1) institutions; (2) appropriate infrastructure; (3) a stable macroeconomic framework; (4) good health and primary education; (5) higher education and training; (6) efficient goods markets; (7) efficient labor markets; (8) developed financial markets; (9) the ability to harness the benefitsof existing technologies; (10) its market size, both domestic and international; (11)producing new and different goods using the most sophisticated production processes; and (12)innovation./.