Singapore is the world's freest economy: Heritage Foundation

Singapore's Marina Bay (Photo: CNN)

Singapore (VNA) - Singapore's economy has been ranked the freest in the world this year in the Heritage Foundation's 2021 Index of Economic Freedom, the second year in a row it topped the list.

The city-state scored 89.7 points, with its overall score having increased by 0.3 points from 2020, primarily because of an improvement in points gained for government spending, the think-tank said on March 4.

Singapore's score placed it far ahead of both the regional average for 40 countries in the Asia Pacific (60.2) and the world average (61.6).

It was followed in the rankings by New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland and Ireland, in that order, with scores ranging from 83.9 (New Zealand) to 81.4 (Ireland).

The US ranked 20th with a score of 74.8, and Germany was 29th with a score of 72.5. Thailand took the 42nd spot with a score of 69.7, and China was No. 107 with a score of 58.4.

Hong Kong, which had topped the list for 25 of the last 26 years, was left out of this year's Index, as it has come under the direct control of Beijing, the Heritage Foundation said.

The Index ranks 12 indicators under four categories: rule of law, size of government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets./.