According to a new analysis by the World Economic Forum (WEF) from Geneva, the Federal Republic of Germany ranks first in terms of innovative capability, and thus ahead of the USA in this category.

Decisive factors included the number of registered patents as well as scientific publications and customer satisfaction with German products. Innovation is one of twelve aspects the study uses to assess a country's competitiveness. These include, for example, the stability of the financial sector, the quality of education, health care, infrastructure or macroeconomic stability. Another positive factor is, that German companies rank fourth in the world when it comes to adjusting to the new, digital world.

Germany ranks third overall in terms of competitiveness, behind the USA and Singapore. For the first time, Germany is thus also the most competitive economy in Europe. Switzerland, Japan, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Great Britain, Sweden and Denmark rank among the top ten.

In the US, entrepreneurial culture, the labor market and the financial system affect the evaluation. China is ranked 28th out of a total of 140 countries surveyed. On the back ranks are Haiti, Yemen and Chad.

View the full report here: http://reports.weforum.org/global-competitiveness-report-2018/