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Cannix Yau

Hong Kong has ranked as the second-most globally competitive economy – its best performance in seven years – climbing one spot from last year to place behind Singapore.
The ranking, released by the Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD) on Thursday, put the city ahead of 68 other economies out of 70 surveyed.
Hong Kong’s position was surpassed only by Singapore, but the city was ahead of Switzerland and Taiwan.
The IMD noted Hong Kong’s rise to second place was built on three consecutive years of improvement and “reinforced the dominance of Asian economies at the top of the ranking”.
The city’s overall performance marked a rebound from 2023 when it was ranked No 7, and matched its No 2 position in 2019. In 2017, it was ranked No 1 out of 63 economies.
The report said the city’s rise reflected sustained performance across the four competitiveness factors measured: government efficiency, infrastructure, economic performance, and business efficiency.


Hong Kong was ranked first in terms of its tax policies, underpinned by zero consumption and employer social security tax rates, as well as business legislation.
“Government efficiency remains its defining competitive strength, keeping second place for the second consecutive year,” the IMD said.
The index covers economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure, each of which has five subcategories.
The report highlighted several challenges in 2026 based on information from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.
These included navigating geopolitical tensions, shifting global trade and investment flows to capture emerging opportunities.
Others included harnessing innovation to accelerate artificial intelligence-driven industrial transformation and developing the Northern Metropolis megaproject as a platform for greater integration with the Greater Bay Area.
Hong Kong also needed to address its ageing population by boosting workforce vitality and productivity, the report said.
Mainland China climbed four spots to 12th, which the IMD attributed to a sharp improvement in business efficiency, helped by gains in productivity, efficiency, finance and the labour market.

Government efficiency also edged up for the mainland, rising one position on stronger business legislation and tax policies. Economic performance, meanwhile, fell two places to seventh, led by a decline in international trade.
The Hong Kong government said the index reaffirmed the city as one of the “most competitive economies” in the world.
It added that the city’s ranking reflected the government’s “ongoing efforts to promote free and open, stable, predictable and business-friendly economic policies, as well as the international community’s trust in Hong Kong’s legal and regulatory environment”.
“Hong Kong’s business efficiency is ranked third globally, reflecting the strong support for industry development rendered by our robust financial ecosystem, as well as the seamless alignment of the city’s business practices and environment with international best standards,” a spokesman said.
“Amid rapidly evolving geopolitical dynamics, Hong Kong, with its close connectivity to both the Chinese mainland and the world under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, and its sound institutions, open markets and sustained investments in innovation, has become a ‘value hub’ that offers both security and growth opportunities.”


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Hong Kong has ranked as the world’s second-most globally competitive economy. Photo: Karma Lo

Hong Kong climbed from third last year to second in the latest rankings. Photo: Jelly Tse

The index covers economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure, each of which has five subcategories. Photo: Karma Lo

Singapore secured first place in this year’s list. Photo: AFP

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Hong Kong has risen three places to fourth in a global ranking for digital competitiveness. Photo: Sam Tsang

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News

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Economy

City trails first-place Singapore out of 70 economies surveyed by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development


City trails first-place Singapore out of 70 economies surveyed by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development.


International Institute for Management Development

Singapore

Greater Bay Area

China

Hong Kong ranks No 2 in global competitiveness with best showing in 7 years

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}City trails first-place Singapore out of 70 economies surveyed by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development

City trails first-place Singapore out of 70 economies surveyed by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development