Georgia Drops to 52nd on Forbes’ List of Best Countries for Business

(TBILISI) -- Georgia dropped nine places to 52nd on Forbes’ annual list of top countries to do business in 2018.

Forbes said Georgia’s economic activity remains agricultural products - including hazelnuts, citrus and grapes. The report also noted Georgia has taken major steps towards diversifying its natural gas and oil imports.

Forbes noted that Georgia’s grew rapidly in 2006-2007, but slowed down during 2008 Russo-Georgian War and the global economic crisis, before picking up steam before the close of the last decade.

“Economic growth accelerated in 2010-2016, but the volume of direct foreign investment has remained static,” Forbes wrote in its review.

Forbes bases its rating on data collected from various organizations, including Freedom House, Heritage Foundation, Property Rights Alliance, United Nations, Transparency International, World Bank Group and World Economic Forum.

The UK was rated the top country to do business in 2018, with New Zealand, the Netherlands, Sweden and Canada amongst the top five. The US and Germany were listed 12th and 13th on the list, while Russia and China were ranked 56th and 66th, respectively. (Caucasus Business Week)