The U.S. is the world’s undisputed economic superpower with a GDP of $16.7 trillion last year, nearly a quarter of the global total. It is the financial capital of the world and has largely recovered from the Great Recession. The economy recently posted its best six-month performance in more than a decade and unemployment stands at 5.9{1f0bb132e08ca1f8565add86e1f8740171c75f84ed80bad4a750114913f392ef}, down from its 2009 peak of 10{1f0bb132e08ca1f8565add86e1f8740171c75f84ed80bad4a750114913f392ef}.
Yet for all of its financial might, the U.S. lags behind many other developed nations when it comes to its business climate, and the gap is growing. The U.S. ranks 18th in Forbes’ ninth annual ranking of the Best Countries for Business, down four spots from last year. It marks the fifth straight year of declines since 2009, when the U.S. ranked second.
We determined the Best Countries for Business by grading 146 nations on 11 different factors: property rights, innovation, taxes, technology, corruption, freedom (personal, trade and monetary), red tape, investor protection and stock market performance. Each category was equally weighted. The data came from published reports from the following organizations: Freedom House, Heritage Foundation, Property Rights Alliance, Transparency International, World Bank and World Economic Forum (click here for more details on the methodology).
| Pos | Country | GDP Growth ({1f0bb132e08ca1f8565add86e1f8740171c75f84ed80bad4a750114913f392ef}) |
GDP/Capita |
Trade Balance as {1f0bb132e08ca1f8565add86e1f8740171c75f84ed80bad4a750114913f392ef} of GDP |
Population (mil) |
| 1 |
Denmark |
0.1 | 37,800 | 6 | 5.6 |
| 2 |
Hong Kong |
2.9 | 52,700 | 2.1 | 7.1 |
| 3 |
New Zealand |
2.5 | 30,400 | -4.6 | 4.4 |
| 4 |
Ireland |
0.6 | 41,300 | 3.3 | 4.8 |
| 5 |
Sweden |
0.9 | 40,900 | 7.1 | 9.7 |
| 6 |
Canada |
1.6 | 43,100 | -3.3 | 34.8 |
| 7 |
Norway |
1.6 | 55,400 | 13.1 | 5.1 |
| 8 |
Singapore |
4.1 | 62,400 | 18.4 | 5.6 |
| 9 |
Switzerland |
2.0 | 54,800 | 10.2 | 8.1 |
| 10 |
Finland |
-0.6 | 35,900 | -0.8 | 5.3 |
| 11 |
Netherlands |
-0.8 | 43,300 | 9.1 | 16.9 |
| 12 |
Belgium |
0.1 | 37,800 | -1.8 | 10.4 |
| 13 |
United Kingdom |
1.8 | 37,300 | -3.8 | 63.7 |
| 14 |
Slovenia |
-1.1 | 27,400 | 6.3 | 2.0 |
| 15 |
Iceland |
1.9 | 40,700 | -0.7 | 0.3 |
| 16 |
Australia |
2.5 | 43,000 | -3 | 22.5 |
| 17 |
Taiwan |
2.2 | 39,600 | 11.7 | 23.4 |
| 18 |
United States |
1.6 | 52,800 | -2.2 | 318.9 |
| 19 |
Luxembourg |
0.5 | 77,900 | 4.5 | 0.5 |
| 20 |
Germany |
0.5 | 39,500 | 7.2 | 81.0 |
| 21 |
Portugal |
-1.8 | 22,900 | 0.5 | 10.8 |
| 22 |
Estonia |
1.5 | 22,400 | -1.5 | 1.3 |
| 23 |
Spain |
-1.3 | 30,100 | 0.2 | 47.7 |
| 24 |
Lithuania |
3.4 | 22,600 | -1.2 | 3.5 |
| 25 |
Austria |
0.4 | 42,600 | 2.5 | 8.2 |
| 26 |
Japan |
2.0 | 37,100 | 1.1 | 127.1 |
| 27 |
France |
0.3 | 35,700 | -2.2 | 66.3 |
| 28 |
United Arab Emirates |
4.0 | 29,900 | 13.5 | 5.6 |
| 29 |
Chile |
4.4 | 19,100 | -3.9 | 17.4 |
| 30 |
Israel |
3.3 | 36,200 | 1.9 | 7.8 |
| 31 |
Macedonia |
3.1 | 10,800 | -1.8 | 2.1 |
| 32 |
South Korea |
2.8 | 33,200 | 4.6 | 49.0 |
| 33 |
Cyprus |
-8.7 | 24,500 | -1.6 | 1.2 |
| 34 |
Mauritius |
3.4 | 16,100 | -9.2 | 1.3 |
| 35 |
Malta |
2.4 | 29,200 | 1.4 | 0.4 |
| 36 |
Latvia |
4.0 | 19,100 | -2 | 2.2 |
| 37 |
Malaysia |
4.7 | 17,500 | 5.3 | 30.1 |
| 38 |
Italy |
-1.8 | 29,600 | -0.1 | 61.7 |
| 39 |
Qatar |
5.5 | 102,100 | 22.3 | 2.1 |
| 40 |
Poland |
1.3 | 21,100 | -2.2 | 38.3 |
| 41 |
Romania |
3.5 | 14,400 | -1.1 | 21.7 |
| 42 |
Bulgaria |
0.5 | 14,400 | -0.3 | 6.9 |
| 43 |
South Africa |
2.0 | 11,500 | -6.7 | 48.4 |
| 44 |
Czech Republic |
-0.9 | 26,300 | -1.7 | 10.6 |
| 45 |
Slovakia |
0.8 | 24,700 | 3.4 | 5.4 |
| 46 |
Croatia |
-1.0 | 17,800 | -0.2 | 4.5 |
| 47 |
Georgia |
2.5 | 6,100 | -8.6 | 4.9 |
| 48 |
Montenegro |
1.5 | 11,900 | -42.9 | 0.7 |
| 49 |
Hungary |
0.2 | 19,800 | 1.3 | 9.9 |
| 50 |
Turkey |
3.8 | 15,300 | -7.1 | 81.6 |
| 51 |
Greece |
-3.8 | 23,600 | 0.8 | 10.8 |
| 52 |
Peru |
5.1 | 11,100 | -4.9 | 30.1 |
| 53 |
Bahrain |
4.4 | 29,800 | 6.7 | 1.3 |
| 54 |
Jordan |
3.3 | 6,100 | -14 | 7.9 |
| 55 |
Uruguay |
3.5 | 16,600 | -4.8 | 3.3 |
| 56 |
Armenia |
4.6 | 6,300 | -6.9 | 3.1 |
| 57 |
Costa Rica |
3.5 | 12,900 | -5.5 | 4.8 |
| 58 |
Albania |
0.7 | 10,700 | -10 | 3.0 |
| 59 |
Saudi Arabia |
3.6 | 31,300 | 18.4 | 27.3 |
| 60 |
Azerbaijan |
5.8 | 10,800 | 17.5 | 9.7 |
| 61 |
Mexico |
1.2 | 15,600 | -1.1 | 120.3 |
| 62 |
Thailand |
2.9 | 9,900 | -0.8 | 67.7 |
| 63 |
Mongolia |
11.8 | 5,900 | -32.7 | 3.0 |
| 64 |
Jamaica |
0.4 | 9,000 | -11 | 2.9 |
| 65 |
Kazakhstan |
5.0 | 14,100 | 0.9 | 17.9 |
| 66 |
Panama |
7.5 | 16,500 | -12.5 | 3.6 |
| 67 |
Colombia |
4.2 | 11,100 | -3 | 46.2 |
| 68 |
Oman |
5.1 | 29,800 | 8.8 | 3.2 |
| 69 |
Botswana |
3.9 | 16,400 | 8.9 | 2.2 |
| 70 |
Zambia |
6.0 | 1,800 | -5.6 | 14.6 |
| 71 |
Trinidad and Tobago |
1.6 | 20,300 | 1.5 | 1.2 |
| 72 |
Namibia |
4.4 | 8,200 | -5.4 | 2.2 |
| 73 |
Barbados |
-0.8 | 25,100 | -6.5 | 0.3 |
| 74 |
Rwanda |
7.5 | 1,500 | -8.7 | 12.3 |
| 75 |
Moldova |
8.9 | 3,800 | -6.4 | 3.6 |
| 76 |
Cape Verde |
1.5 | 4,400 | -5.1 | 0.5 |
| 77 |
Indonesia |
5.3 | 5,200 | -3.3 | 253.6 |
| 78 |
Kuwait |
2.3 | 42,100 | 38.5 | 2.7 |
| 79 |
Morocco |
5.1 | 5,500 | -9.2 | 33.0 |
| 80 |
Seychelles |
3.3 | 25,900 | -11 | 0.1 |
| 81 |
Ghana |
7.9 | 3,500 | -11.3 | 25.8 |
| 82 |
Philippines |
6.8 | 4,700 | 2.8 | 107.7 |
| 83 |
Senegal |
4.0 | 2,100 | -8.4 | 13.6 |
| 84 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina |
0.8 | 8,300 | -5 | 3.9 |
| 84 |
Serbia |
2.0 | 11,100 | -4.1 | 7.2 |
| 86 |
Dominican Republic |
2.0 | 9,700 | -3.9 | 10.3 |
| 87 |
Tunisia |
2.8 | 9,900 | -9.4 | 10.9 |
| 88 |
Ukraine |
0.4 | 7,400 | -6.8 | 44.3 |
| 89 |
Sri Lanka |
6.3 | 6,500 | -3.8 | 21.9 |
| 90 |
El Salvador |
1.6 | 7,500 | -5.4 | 6.1 |
| 91 |
Russia |
1.3 | 18,100 | 3.5 | 142.5 |
| 92 |
Madagascar |
2.6 | 1,000 | -18.5 | 23.2 |
| 93 |
India |
3.2 | 4,000 | -4.5 | 1,236.3 |
| 94 |
Brazil |
2.3 | 12,100 | -3.5 | 202.7 |
| 95 |
Guatemala |
3.3 | 5,300 | -3.4 | 14.6 |
| 96 |
Guyana |
5.3 | 8,500 | -16.9 | 0.7 |
| 97 |
China |
7.7 | 9,800 | 2 | 1,355.7 |
| 98 |
Kenya |
5.1 | 1,800 | -9.9 | 45.0 |
| 99 |
Mozambique |
7.0 | 1,200 | -40.1 | 24.7 |
| 100 |
Lebanon |
1.5 | 15,800 | -7.4 | 5.9 |
| 101 |
Kyrgyzstan |
7.4 | 2,500 | -15.6 | 5.6 |
| 102 |
Lesotho |
4.1 | 2,200 | -21.1 | 1.9 |
| 103 |
Argentina |
3.5 | 18,600 | -0.5 | 43.0 |
| 104 |
Cote d'Ivoire |
8.0 | 1,800 | -2.2 | 22.8 |
| 105 |
Pakistan |
3.6 | 3,100 | -1.0 | 196.2 |
| 106 |
Paraguay |
12.0 | 6,800 | 4.5 | 6.7 |
| 107 |
Bangladesh |
5.8 | 2,100 | 2.5 | 166.3 |
| 108 |
Egypt |
1.8 | 6,600 | -2.3 | 86.9 |
| 109 |
Swaziland |
0.0 | 5,700 | – | 1.4 |
| 110 |
Bhutan |
5.8 | 7,000 | 18.8 | 0.7 |
| 111 |
Vietnam |
5.3 | 4,000 | 4.8 | 93.4 |
| 112 |
Benin |
5.0 | 1,600 | -8.4 | 10.2 |
| 113 |
Nepal |
3.6 | 1,500 | 3.4 | 31.0 |
| 114 |
Sierra Leone |
13.3 | 1,400 | -10.1 | 5.7 |
| 115 |
Burkina Faso |
6.5 | 1,500 | -3.0 | 18.4 |
| 116 |
Tanzania |
7.0 | 1,700 | -15.2 | 49.6 |
| 117 |
Suriname |
4.7 | 12,900 | 2.0 | 0.6 |
| 118 |
Honduras |
2.8 | 4,800 | -8.7 | 8.6 |
| 119 |
Mali |
4.8 | 1,100 | -8.1 | 16.5 |
| 120 |
Nicaragua |
4.6 | 4,500 | -14.0 | 5.8 |
| 121 |
Cambodia |
7.0 | 2,600 | -8.1 | 15.5 |
| 122 |
Uganda |
5.6 | 1,500 | -8.4 | 35.9 |
| 123 |
Ecuador |
4.0 | 10,600 | -0.9 | 15.7 |
| 124 |
Burundi |
4.5 | 600 | -18.4 | 10.4 |
| 125 |
Timor-Leste |
8.1 | 21,400 | 38.8 | 1.2 |
| 126 |
Nigeria |
6.2 | 2,800 | 3.2 | 177.2 |
| 127 |
Malawi |
5.0 | 900 | -7.6 | 17.4 |
| 128 |
Bolivia |
6.8 | 5,500 | 3.3 | 10.6 |
| 129 |
Tajikistan |
7.4 | 2,300 | -3.9 | 8.1 |
| 130 |
Laos |
8.3 | 3,100 | -4.8 | 6.8 |
| 131 |
Gabon |
6.6 | 19,200 | 8.9 | 1.7 |
| 132 |
Iran |
-1.5 | 12,800 | -2.1 | 80.8 |
| 133 |
Cameroon |
4.6 | 2,400 | -5.2 | 23.1 |
| 134 |
Zimbabwe |
3.2 | 600 | -5.5 | 13.8 |
| 135 |
Mauritania |
6.4 | 2,200 | -29.6 | 3.5 |
| 136 |
Ethiopia |
7.0 | 1,300 | -5.8 | 96.6 |
| 137 |
Algeria |
3.1 | 7,500 | 3.1 | 38.8 |
| 138 |
Gambia |
6.4 | 2,000 | -18.3 | 1.9 |
| 139 |
Yemen |
3.8 | 2,500 | -7.5 | 26.1 |
| 140 |
Venezuela |
1.6 | 13,600 | 0.9 | 28.9 |
| 141 |
Angola |
5.6 | 6,300 | 8.6 | 19.1 |
| 142 |
Haiti |
3.4 | 1,300 | -15.4 | 10.0 |
| 143 |
Myanmar |
6.8 | 1,700 | -4.4 | 55.7 |
| 144 |
Libya |
-5.1 | 11,300 | 3.8 | 6.2 |
| 145 |
Chad |
3.9 | 2,500 | -6.1 | 11.4 |
| 146 |
Guinea |
2.9 | 1,100 | -26.8 | 11.5 |
– forbes
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