AN ANALYSIS OF CHINA'S COMPETITIVENES BETWEEN 1995 AND 1999

Competitiveness is the issue of the decade. Country competitiveness could have far reaching implications to the country's scale and scope of contribution to international trade, its ability to attract foreign direct (and indirect investment), its ability to gain access to international forums as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and last, but certainly not least, its ability to foster longer term economic growth. It is no surprise, therefore, that competitiveness performance is held central in national and international forums and that it is stated, compared and analysed over time and across borders. Two organizations have gone a long way towards measuring and recording competitive performance: The World Bank and the International Economic Forum. The World Bank began measuring competitiveness years ago. It did not produce a single measure, but a combination of measures that could lead to a judgement. The measures are elaborate and constitute a blend of the building blocks of the concept. The World Economic Forum has developed a unique series of measures that, taken together, should lead to a “competitiveness rank” or a sequencing of countries according to their competitive clout. Countries are subjected to an annual review of their composite parameters and ranked accordingly.