Singapore overtakes Switzerland as world's most competitive economy in IMD ranking

Singapore has reclaimed the top spot in the 2026 edition of IMD's World Competitiveness Rankings, overtaking Switzerland who placed first last year.

Released on Thursday (June 18), the rankings assessed 70 economies based on four competitiveness factors — economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure.

"Geopolitical conditions are worsening, and global fragmentation is increasing," said Arturo Bris, Director of the World Competitiveness Center (WCC) in the report. 

"Nations with their own tried and tested, credible institutions gain an advantage in this context because — as the international systems cease to serve so many national needs — businesses can carry on as usual."

Singapore placed first in business efficiency, fourth in government efficiency and economic performance, and fifth in infrastructure, according to the report.

WCC economist Fabian Grimm wrote in the report that Singapore's strong performance in the 2026 rankings show a "broad-based recovery and strengthening across multiple dimensions of competitiveness". 

"Singapore's performance is not the product of a single standout factor but rather a rebalancing of its historically crosscutting competitiveness profile," he said, adding that Singapore's return to first place is a strong indicator of its adaptive capacity to course-correct efficiently amid heightened volatility. 

At the same time, the Singapore economy still faces "pockets of strain", including persistent and intensifying cost pressures that businesses operating in Singapore encounter.

Top 10 economies in IMD's 2026 Competitiveness Ranking:

Two other Asian economies, Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan, were part of the top 10 economies in the 2026 ranking, coming in second and fourth place respectively.

Hong Kong SAR progressed from fifth in 2024 and third in 2025, reflecting sustained performance across all four competitiveness factors, particularly in government efficiency which remains its strong suit. 

Switzerland slipped two positions to third place, conceding the top position it held in 2025 to Singapore. 

"The decline is driven primarily by a sharp fall in economic performance, which dropped to 37th, by far the most significant movement in this year's profile," said Grimm.

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dana.leong@asiaone.com