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Malaysia has climbed to 15th place in the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Ranking, marking its best performance in a decade
The country jumped eight places from 23rd position last year and has steadily improved from 34th place in 2024.
Published annually by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) World Competitiveness Center, the ranking assesses 70 economies based on four key factors: economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency, and infrastructure.
According to IMD, Malaysia recorded improvements across all four pillars this year.
Malaysia ranked fourth globally in economic performance, while government efficiency rose 11 spots to 14th. Business efficiency improved by 16 places to rank 16th, and infrastructure also improved by two places to 33rd.
The top 20 economies in the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Ranking are:
- Singapore
- Hong Kong
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
- United Arab Emirates
- Denmark
- Ireland
- Netherlands
- Sweden
- United States
- Qatar
- China
- Saudi Arabia
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Canada
- Australia
- Norway
- Finland
- Bahrain
Malaysia was the second-highest ranked Southeast Asian economy after Singapore. Thailand came in 26th, while Vietnam ranked 27th.
Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azmi Abu Bakar said the stronger performance demonstrates the effectiveness of reforms introduced by the government
According to Bernama, he said improvements in the government efficiency pillar indicate that efforts to strengthen governance, improve service delivery, and reduce bureaucratic burdens are beginning to produce tangible benefits for both the public and businesses.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim thanked civil servants and cabinet members for supporting these efforts.
"This achievement reflects the government's clear focus on improving efficiency. Therefore, I would like to extend my congratulations to all civil servants as well as my colleagues in the cabinet, who have consistently monitored and supported these efforts," he said, reported the New Straits Times.
Shamsul Azmi added that Malaysia is aiming to break into the world's top 12 most competitive economies by 2030.
