Global Competitiveness 2008-2009

Argentina: puesto 88 sobre 134 países (caímos tres lugares)

Subíndices:

Basic requirements: puesto 89
1. Institutions: puesto 128 <--
2. Infrastructure: puesto 87
3. Macroeconomic stability: puesto 64
4. Health and primary education: puesto 61
Efficiency enhancers: puesto 81
5. Higher education and training: puesto 56
6. Goods market efficiency: puesto 122 <--
7. Labor market efficiency: puesto 130 <--
8. Financial market sophistication: puesto 117 <--
9. Technological readiness: puesto 76
10. Market size: puesto 24
Innovation factors: puesto 81
11. Business sophistication: puesto 71
12. Innovation: puesto 98

Report: Notwithstanding its strong recovery after the deep economic crisis of 2001, with high growth rates since 2003,26 Argentina continues to place quite low in the rankings at 88th position, with an assessment similar to last year.The country has a number of important competitive advantages, including its relatively well educated labor force (ranked 61st and 56th, respectively, on the health and primary education, and higher education and training pillars) and the large market size available to its enterprises (24th). However, the economy is characterized by some serious weaknesses, representing enduring elements of vulnerability going into the future. For example, despite debt restructuring, the public debt remains high, estimated at 56.1 percent of GDP in 2007 (placing the country 97th on this indicator); this, combined with continuing high inflation, may undermine the steps taken toward macroeconomic stability.
On a related note, the GCI highlights a deep distrust on the part of the business community regarding the quality and efficiency of the country’s public institutions (128th), the respect and enforcement of the rule of law, and the even-handedness of the public sector in its relations with the private sector.This is likely linked to the government’s tendency over recent years to adopt discretionary policies (such as the attempt to increase taxes on agricultural exports), coupled with the ongoing renegotiation of a number of utility provision contracts since 2001, eroding business confidence. Indeed, this tendency can also be seen in the country’s overregulated and rigid goods (122nd), labor (130th), and financial (117th) markets, which are impeded from allocating resources to their most effective use. In this context, the most pressing challenges will be the institutionalization of sound fiscal policies and the restoration of investors’ trust in the business climate and proper functioning of the economy.

The most problematic factors for doing business
Policy instability.............................................................22.9
Inflation ...........................................................................15.2
Access to financing......................................................11.0
Corruption.........................................................................8.6
Restrictive labor regulations.........................................8.4
Inadequate supply of infrastructure ............................6.5
Inefficient government bureaucracy...........................6.0
Tax regulations ................................................................5.8
Government instability/coups .......................................5.0
Tax rates ...........................................................................3.8
Inadequately educated workforce...............................2.2
Poor work ethic in national labor force ......................1.7
Crime and theft ................................................................1.7
Foreign currency regulations........................................1.3

Institutions in detail:
1.01 Property rights ...........................................................127
1.02 Intellectual property protection..................................116
1.03 Diversion of public funds ...........................................125
1.04 Public trust of politicians............................................131
1.05 Judicial independence ...............................................125
1.06 Favoritism in decisions of government officials ........128
1.07 Wastefulness of government spending.....................126
1.08 Burden of government regulation..............................119
1.09 Efficiency of legal framework ....................................126
1.10 Transparency of government policymaking ...............132
1.11 Business costs of terrorism.........................................38
1.12 Business costs of crime and violence .......................111
1.13 Organized crime...........................................................94
1.14 Reliability of police services.......................................130
1.15 Ethical behavior of firms ............................................120
1.16 Strength of auditing and reporting standards ............100
1.17 Efficacy of corporate boards........................................91
1.18 Protection of minority shareholders’ interests ..........117

World Economic Forum