When It Comes to Global Competitiveness, US Is ... 4th

Today is not a great day for US dominance: For the second year in a row we've taken a hit in the global competitiveness rankings, this time falling from second to fourth due largely to our government debt and weak economic outlook. In first place until two years ago, we've now fallen behind Switzerland, Sweden, and Singapore, the Washington Post reports.

"The US has very important strengths, but macroeconomic stability was a problem beforehand and the crisis exacerbated it," an economist from the World Economic Forum, which compiled the rankings, said. And while the US ranks first in innovation, of the 139 countries considered, we ranked 84th in the cost to business of crime and violence, and 125th in the business costs of terrorism. In terms of gains, Indonesia jumped from 54th to 44th, and Vietnam rose from 75th to 59th.
(More deficit stories.)