New Zealand Tops Forbes List of Best Countries for Business

New Zealand has been named as the best country for business in the prestigious annual rankings from Forbes.

The country climbed to the top of the list from its No. 2 ranking last year.

The magazine’s judging panel determined the Best Countries for Business by grading 141 nations on 11 different factors: property rights, innovation, taxes, technology, corruption, freedom (personal, trade and monetary), red tape, investor protection and stock market performance.

New Zealand is the smallest economy in the Forbes top 10 at $162 billion GDP, but it ranks first in four of the 11 metrics the analysts examined, including personal freedom and investor protection, as well as a lack of red tape and corruption.

The country beat Denmark into second place, with Hong Kong third and Singapore fourth.

Forbes said that New Zealand’s economy held up better than most during the global financial crisis. The country cut its corporate tax rate from 30% to 28% last year and eliminated certain deductions, making the cut fiscally neutral. Investors have prospered, with the country’s benchmark stock index, the NZX 50, up 24% over the past 12 months.

The Forbes No.1 ranking follows another authoritative report from The World Bank and International Finance Corporation that named New Zealand as the easiest place to start a business out of 185 countries.

The Doing Business 2013 report said it takes only one day and one procedure to register a private company in New Zealand. New Zealand was also rated highest for protecting investors.

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