Economic Freedom of the World Annual Report 2010

Freshly pressed from the Fraser Institute, the newest rankings in freedom-loving governance:

In the wake of the global recession, the average level of economic freedom around the world dropped for the first time in decades, according to a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, Canada’s leading public policy think-tank. This year’s report shows that economic freedom experienced its first global downturn in a quarter century, with the average score falling to 6.67 in 2008 (the most recent year for which data is available) from 6.74 in 2007. Of the 123 countries with economic freedom rankings dating back to 1980, 88 (71.5 per cent) saw their rankings decrease while only 35 (28.5 per cent) recorded increases.

The top ten of 2010:

In this year’s index, Hong Kong retains the highest rating for economic freedom, 9.05 out of 10. The other top 10 nations are: Singapore (8.70), New Zealand (8.27), Switzerland (8.08), Chile (8.03), United States (7.96), Canada (7.95), Australia (7.90), Mauritius (7.82), and the United Kingdom (7.81).