China has made it into the top 25 innovative countries while Switzerland maintained its lead over Sweden, the U.K., the U.S. and Finland, in an annually compiled index.
Singapore edged one slot higher from last year to sixth place. Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany round out the top innovative countries in the Global Innovation Index, released by Cornell University, Insead and the World Intellectual Property Organization, or WIPO in Geneva.
China Gap
The index tracks the innovation capabilities and results of world economies through two sub-indices tracking metrics such as market and business sophistication and infrastructure.
China's advancing in the ranking reflects better innovation as well as a revision to measurements used by the index.
«Despite China’s rise, an «innovation divide» persists between developed and developing countries amid increasing awareness among policymakers that fostering innovation is crucial to a vibrant, competitive economy,» the study's authors said.
WIPO Urges R&D Spending
Before the financial crisis of 2008-09, spending for research and development to foster innovation grew at roughly 7 percent annually. That figure has fallen to roughly 4 percent in 2014, as growth in emerging economies slows and higher-income countries tighten their pursestrings.
«Investing in innovation is critical to raising long-term economic growth,» says WIPO Director General Francis Gurry (pictured).
«In this current economic climate, uncovering new sources of growth and leveraging the opportunities raised by global innovation are priorities for all stakeholders.»
China Advances on Quality
Four countries — Japan, the U.S., the U.K., and Germany— stand out in so-called innovation quality, an indicator for quality of universities, number of scientific publications and international patent filings.
China advanced to 17th place in this measure, making it the leader among middle-income economies for innovation quality, followed by India, which has overtaken Brazil.
«Investing in improving innovation quality is essential for closing the innovation divide,» Soumitra Dutta, Dean of Cornell College of Business said in a statement.
