The Global Competitiveness Report

The Global Competitiveness Report 2012–2013 is being

released amid a long period of economic uncertainty.

The tentative recovery that seemed to be gaining ground

during 2010 and the first half of 2011 has given way

to renewed concerns. The global economy faces a

number of significant and interrelated challenges that

could hamper a genuine upturn after an economic crisis

half a decade long in much of the world, especially

in the most advanced economies. The persisting

financial difficulties in the periphery of the euro zone

have led to a long-lasting and unresolved sovereign

debt crisis that has now reached the boiling point. The

possibility of Greece and perhaps other countries leaving

the euro is now a distinct prospect, with potentially

devastating consequences for the region and beyond.

This development is coupled with the risk of a weak

recovery in several other advanced economies outside

of Europe—notably in the United States, where political

gridlock on fiscal tightening could dampen the growth

outlook. Furthermore, given the expected slowdown in

economic growth in China, India, and other emerging markets, reinforced by a potential decline in global trade

and volatile capital flows, it is not clear which regions

can drive growth and employment creation in the short

to medium term.

Policymakers are struggling to find ways to

cooperate and manage the current economic challenges

while preparing their economies to perform well in an

increasingly difficult and unpredictable global landscape. Amid the short-term crisis management, it remains

critical for countries to establish the fundamentals

that underpin economic growth and development for the longer term. The World Economic Forum has, for

more than three decades, played a facilitating role in

this process by providing detailed assessments of the

productive potential of nations worldwide. The Report

contributes to an understanding of the key factors that

determine economic growth, helps to explain why some

countries are more successful than others in raising

income levels and opportunities for their respective

populations, and offers policymakers and business

leaders an important tool in the formulation of improved

economic policies and institutional reforms.

The complexity of today’s global economic environment has made it more important than ever

to recognize and encourage the qualitative as well as

the quantitative aspects of growth, integrating such

concepts as social and environmental sustainability

to provide a fuller picture of what is needed and what

works. In this context, the Forum’s Global Benchmarking

Network has continued to push forward with its research

on how sustainability relates to competitiveness and

economic performance. To this end, Chapter 1.2 of this

Report presents our evolving analysis of how country

competitiveness can be assessed once issues of

social and environmental sustainability are taken into

account. This represents an important area for the World

Economic Forum’s research going forward.

This year’s Report features a record number of

144 economies, and thus continues to be the most

comprehensive assessment of its kind. It contains a

detailed profile for each of the economies included in

the study as well as an extensive section of data tables

with global rankings covering over 100 indicators. This Report remains the flagship publication within the

Forum’s Global Benchmarking Network, which produces

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