Singapore slips in global competitiveness rankings
Economists say high cost structure, talent attraction and regional competition are growing challenges
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Singapore
SINGAPORE has fallen to fourth place - from third a year ago - on business school IMD's latest ranking of the world's most competitive economies. This came as Hong Kong rose to top the annual scoreboard, unseating last year's leader, the US, to third place behind Switzerland.
Local economists were unruffled by the one-place drop in the yearly rankings shuffle but said the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) 2016's analysis highlights perennial issues of high costs and talent attraction as growing challenges to Singapore's long-term competitiveness.
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