Ireland has slipped down to fourth place in the Institute of Management Development (IMD) World Competitiveness Yearbook 2024.
That is down from second place last year, in a study that compares 67 economies. This is the second year in a row in which the country has placed within the top five.
The top three just ahead of Ireland were Singapore in first place, Switzerland in second and Denmark in third.
The main cause of the drop was down to Ireland’s fall in economic performance, from first last year to 10th this year, with the country attaining a score of 60.5. The reason for this is slowing gross domestic product growth, according to the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council (NCPC).
Ireland still came out on top of all the Eurozone countries however, beating out its nearest competitor, the Netherlands, in ninth.
In terms of other categories, Ireland was in sixth place for government efficiency, with a score of 80.6, and the country placed highly for business efficiency, in 3rd with a score of 89.6.
Infrastructure is a sore point though, with a much lower ranking of 17th and a score of 68.4. International investment was also down, with Ireland placing in sixth place, down two places from 4th last year. However, in terms of international trade, Ireland rose 16 places year-on-year to 14th.
“Ireland’s position in the rankings demonstrates that, despite a relative slowdown in the rate of economic expansion, the Irish economy remains strongly competitive,” said the NCPC.
“As in previous years, small, advanced economies continue to dominate the top places in the IMD rankings.”
(Pic: Getty Images)