New Zealand dethrones Singapore as easiest place to do business

WASHINGTON (Oct 26): New Zealand has overtaken Singapore as the best country in the world to do business, according to the World Bank.

Singapore slipped to second in the bank’s 2017 “Doing Business” report after topping the ranking for a decade. Finland dropped out of the top 10, falling to 13th. Macedonia, which placed 92nd a decade ago, improved two spots from a year earlier to No. 10.

The report ranks countries based on 11 sets of indicators such as the ease of starting a business, dealing with construction permits, accessing electricity and obtaining credit. For the first time, the Washington-based development lender took gender factors into consideration in assessing how easy it is to start a business, register property and enforce contracts.

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