WASHINGTON, JAN. 13, 2009--North America is the
world leader in economic freedom, boasting two of the 10 freest
countries in the 2009 "Index of Economic Freedom," published
annually by
The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage
Foundation.
The United States enjoyed the highest ranking within the
region and finished sixth in the world, followed immediately by
Canada.
One reason the region does so well is the North America Free
Trade Agreement. "NAFTA has been a positive force enhancing
economic freedom," the Index authors wrote, "connecting more than
400 million people in an economic area with about one-third of the
world's total GDP."
Mexico still has a way to go to catch up with its
northern neighbors, and could begin doing so by improving its
investment freedom and freedom from corruption, the authors
noted.
In a first for the Index, Canada, Mexico and the
United States are split off from the rest of the Americas
and graded as a separate region.
To compile the Index, the authors measured 183 countries across
10 specific factors of economic freedom: The higher the score, the
lower the level of government interference. All countries were
graded on a scale of zero to 100.
The 10 freedoms measured are: business freedom, trade freedom,
fiscal freedom, government size, monetary freedom, investment
freedom, financial freedom, property rights, freedom from
corruption and labor freedom. Ratings in each category were
averaged to produce the overall Index score.
This year's Index aims to be the most precise measure of
economic freedom ever published. The authors fine-tuned their
methodology. For example, they fine-tuned the "labor" component,
analyzing six labor freedom factors instead of the four studied in
previous Indexes.
Worldwide, the average rating for economic freedom held
essentially steady this year. However, "there is a real possibility
that the economic freedom scores in this edition might represent
the historical high point for economic freedom in the world," the
authors warned. As governments attempt to stave off a global
recession, their meddling could threaten economic freedom and
long-term economic prosperity.
Of the 183 countries ranked (the most ever), only seven were
classified as "free" (a score of 80 or higher). Another 23 were
rated as "mostly free" (70-79.9). The bulk of countries--120
economies--were rated either "moderately free" (60-60.9) or "mostly
unfree" (50-50.9). The remaining 29 countries were rated
"repressed" economies, with total freedom scores below 50.
This is the 15th consecutive year The Heritage
Foundation and The Wall Street Journal have published the
Index. The 2009 edition was edited by Kim Holmes, Heritage's vice
president for foreign affairs, and Ambassador Terry Miller, head of
Heritage's Center for International trade and Economics.
Copies of the 2009 Index (455 pp., US $24.95) can be ordered at
heritage.org/index or by calling 1-800-975-8625 and are
available in English or Spanish. Additionally the full text, charts
and graphs are available at
www.heritage.org/index.
About The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal, the flagship publication of Dow Jones
& Company is the world's leading business publication. Founded
in 1889, The Wall Street Journal has a print and online circulation
of more than 2 million, reaching the nation's top business and
political leaders, as well as investors across the country. Holding
33 Pulitzer Prizes for outstanding journalism, The Wall Street
Journal provides readers with trusted information and knowledge to
make better decisions. The Wall Street franchise has more than 760
journalists world-wide, part of the Dow Jones network of nearly
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are part of The Wall Street Journal franchise, with a global
audience of 3.8 million, include The Wall Street Journal Asia and
The Wall Street Journal Europe. The Wall Street Journal
Online at WSJ.com is the largest paid subscription news site on the
Web with 10.9 million users each month. In 2008, the Journal
was ranked No. 1 in BtoB's Media Power 50 for the ninth consecutive
year. The Wall Street Journal Radio Network services news and
information to more than 310 radio stations in the U.S.
About The Heritage
Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is the nation's most broadly supported
public policy research institute, with more than 390,000
individual, foundation and corporate donors. Founded in 1973,
Heritage now has a staff of 244 and an expense budget of $61
million.