Taiwan’s global competitiveness slipped one notch to 15th place this year, its worst showing since 2008, when it ranked 17th, as it lagged in terms of innovation and business sophistication, a World Economic Forum (WEF) report said yesterday.
The nation was ranked fourth in the Asia-Pacific region, behind Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong, but ahead of Malaysia, South Korea and China, the report said.
Taiwan scored 5.28 this year in overall ratings of between 1 and 7 from 114 factors in 12 categories among 144 economies worldwide.
INNOVATION
While it gained headway in macroeconomic environment and efficiency enhancers, the nation slid three notches this year to 16th if measured by innovation and sophistication, the annual report said.
That included a retreat in business sophistication to 21st place from 17th and a drop in innovation to 11th from 10th, the report showed.
Innovation is particularly important for economies as they develop and the possibility of generating more value by merely integrating and adapting exogenous technologies tends to disappear, the report said.
HIGHER VALUE-ADDED
“Firms must design and develop cutting-edge products and processes to maintain a competitive edge and move toward even higher value-added activities,” the report said.
This upward migration requires an environment that is conducive to innovative activity and supported by the public and the private sectors, it said.
The report added that it takes sufficient investment in research and development, especially by the private sector.
The progression also requires high-quality scientific research institutions that can generate the basic knowledge needed to build the new technologies, the report said.
In addition, it requires extensive collaboration in research and technological developments between universities and industry and the protection of intellectual property, the report said.
Taiwan is home to the world’s top contract chipmakers, chip designers, critical electronic component suppliers, laptop computer brands and peripheral product vendors.
The report also urged all countries to open their economy to international trade, investment and the movement of people across borders, saying trade and competitiveness are intimately connected and no country has developed successfully in modern times without opening.
Trade no longer means goods crossing borders, but encompasses the international and interconnected flow of goods services, investment, people and idea along a value chain, the report said.
It added that global value chains would be the key drivers of employment, productivity and growth in international grade.
The world has yet to emerge from the consequences of the global financial crisis in 2008 as seen in small GDP growth and relatively high unemployment, the report said.
Real estate agent and property developer JSL Construction & Development Co (愛山林) led the average compensation rankings among companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) last year, while contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) finished 14th. JSL Construction paid its employees total average compensation of NT$4.78 million (US$159,701), down 13.5 percent from a year earlier, but still ahead of the most profitable listed tech giants, including TSMC, TWSE data showed. Last year, the average compensation (which includes salary, overtime, bonuses and allowances) paid by TSMC rose 21.6 percent to reach about NT$3.33 million, lifting its ranking by 10 notches
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