Hong Kong is World’s Freest Economy (United States is Tenth)
Hong Kong remains the world’s freest economy, according to the Economic Freedom of the World: 2011 Annual Report. This is the 15th consecutive year that Hong Kong has topped the ranking.
Donald Tsang, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, welcomed Hong Kong’s ranking:
“That means strong fiscal discipline, low taxes, open markets, free flow of information, goods and capital, clean government and a level playing field for business. The fact that we have held true to these beliefs for decades is no doubt one reason why Hong Kong has consistently ranked so highly in the league tables of economic freedom.”
Hong Kong offers the highest level of economic freedom, with a score of 9.01 out of 10, followed by Singapore with a rating of 8.68. The US is the tenth freest economy in the world with a rating of 7.60.
The Economic Freedom of the World report uses 42 different measures to create an index ranking economies around the world based on policies that encourage economic freedom.
Economic freedom is measured in five different areas: (1) size of government; (2) legal structure and security of property rights; (3) access to sound money; (4) freedom to trade internationally; and (5) regulation of credit, labor and business.
