报道称美国重返全球竞争力榜首

一份最新报告显示，自2008-2009年全球金融危机以来，美国首次成为全球竞争力最强的国家。

新加坡、德国、瑞士和日本分列第二至五名。

世界经济论坛（World Economic Forum）发布的最新《全球竞争力报告》（Global Competitiveness Report）采用了新的方法，旨在更好地反映所谓第四次工业革命的影响。以WEF的简称为人所知的世界经济论坛，将美国取得在140个经济体中的霸主地位归功于三件事：市场规模、创新生态系统（包括创意产生、创业文化、开放性和灵活性）和稳定性。这项研究用了98个指标来衡量每个国家的竞争力。

世界经济论坛创始人兼执行主席克劳斯·施瓦布在报告的序言中写道：“事态的发展——第四次工业革命和大萧条的后果——正在重新定义通往繁荣的道路。实际上，正是繁荣的概念本身，对政策的制定具有深远的影响。忧心忡忡的领导人正在努力寻找答案和解决方案，目标是克服短期的、保守的措施。”

尽管如此，对美国来说，也不全是阳光普照。根据世界经济论坛的数据，有迹象表明美国的社会结构正在变得脆弱——在民族上的得分从65.5下降到了63.3分（100分满分）——而且由于谋杀率是其他发达经济体平均水平的5倍，安全状况正在恶化。此外，美国在政府制衡方面仅排在第40位（100分制的76.3分），司法独立方面排在第15位（79.1分），腐败方面排在第16位（75分）。

但是美国的创新能力非常强大。“创新曾经是最发达经济体的专利，如今已成为所有发达经济体的当务之急，也成为越来越多新兴国家的优先目标。然而，它们中的绝大多数还在努力使创新成为有意义的增长引擎。”报告称。“结果显示，世界上只有少数几个创新大国，包括德国、美国和瑞士。”

根据世界经济论坛的排名，全球竞争力排名前20位的国家和地区是：

1、美国85.6

2、新加坡83.5

3、德国82.8

4、瑞士82.6

5、日本82.5

6、荷兰82.4

7、中国香港82.3

8、英国82.0

9、瑞典81.7

10、丹麦80.6

11、芬兰80.3

12、加拿大79.9

13、中国台湾79.3

14、澳大利亚78.9

15、韩国78.8

16、挪威78.2

17、法国78.0

18、新西兰77.5

19、卢森堡76.6

20、以色列76.6

为什么全球竞争力很重要？报告认为，这是因为它有助于提高生活水平，还能够产生追求更广泛的社会目标所需的资源。

作者写道：“经济发展的各个方面之间不可避免地存在着社会、经济和环境的紧张关系。然而，它们之间并没有固有的得失。我们认为，讨论竞争力与追求其他发展目标不仅是相容的，而且是不可或缺的。”（财富中文网）

译者：冉文忠

The United States is the most globally competitive nation in the world for the first time since the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, according to a new report.

Singapore, Germany, Switzerland, and Japan rounded out the top five.

The latest Global Competitiveness Report, conducted by the World Economic Forum, uses a new methodology that aims to better account for the effects of the so-called Fourth Industrial Revolution. WEF, as it’s known, credits three things for U.S. supremacy among 140 economies: market size, innovation ecosystem (including idea generation, entrepreneurial culture, openness, and agility), and stability. The study measured each nation using 98 indicators.

“These developments—the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the consequences of the Great Recession—are redefining the pathways to prosperity and, indeed, the very notion of prosperity, with profound implications for policy-making,” wrote WEF founder and executive chairman Klaus Schwab in the report’s preface. “Concerned leaders are grappling for answers and solutions, aiming to go beyond short-term, reactionary measures.”

It’s not all sunshine for the U.S., though. According to WEF, there are indications of a weakening social fabric in the States—the nation scored 63.3 out of 100, down from 65.5—and worsening security thanks to a homicide rate that’s five times the average of other advanced economies. What’s more, the U.S. was just 40th place for checks and balances (score: 76.3 out of 100), 15th for judicial independence (79.1 out of 100), and 16th for corruption (75 out of 100).

But the American innovation economy is strong. “Once the preserve of the most advanced economies, innovation has become an imperative for all advanced economies and a priority for a growing number of emerging countries. And yet the vast majority of them are struggling to make innovation a meaningful engine of growth,” the report’s authors write. “The results show that there are only a few innovation powerhouses in the world, including Germany, the United States and Switzerland.”

The top 20 countries and areas in the world as ranked by global competitiveness, according to WEF:

1． United States 85.6

2. Singapore 83.5

3. Germany 82.8

4. Switzerland 82.6

5. Japan 82.5

6. Netherlands 82.4

7. Hong Kong 82.3

8. United Kingdom 82.0

9. Sweden 81.7

10. Denmark 80.6

11. Finland 80.3

12. Canada 79.9

13. Taiwan 79.3

14. Australia 78.9

15. South Korea 78.8

16. Norway 78.2

17. France 78.0

18. New Zealand 77.5

19. Luxembourg 76.6

20. Israel 76.6

Why does global competitiveness matter? Because it contributes to higher living standards and generates the resources needed for wider societal goals, according to the report.

“There are, inevitably, tensions—social, economic, and environmental—between the various dimensions of economic progress,” the report’s authors write. “However, there are no inherent trade-offs among them. We believe that a competitiveness agenda is not just compatible but integral to the pursuit of other developmental goals.”