Switzerland#1 in Open for Business and #4 in Best Countries Overall Switzerland, officially called the Swiss Federation, is a small country in Central Europe made up of 16,000 square miles of glacier-carved Alps, lakes and valleys. It’s one of the world’s wealthiest countries, and has been well-known for centuries for its neutrality.GDP of $732 billion, GDP PER CAPITA, PPP of $73,144 and POPULATION of 8.58 million. READ MORE »
Panama#2 in Open for Business and #51 in Best Countries Overall Panama is a Central American nation that connects Costa Rica and South America by way of Colombia. Much of the country’s narrative is tied to a connector of another kind: the Panama Canal, a hub of global trade and transportation that joins the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Caribbean Sea. Construction of the canal began immediately after Panama’s secession from Colombia at the turn of the 20th century. The two nations, along with Ecuador and Venezuela initially, claimed joint independence from Spain in 1821. The massive project was financed and built by the United States in return for a claim to sovereignty over land on either side of it, effectively splitting Panama in half.GDP of $67.0 billion, GDP PER CAPITA, PPP of $32,770 and POPULATION of 4.25 million. READ MORE »
Canada#3 in Open for Business and #1 in Best Countries Overall Canada takes up about two-fifths of the North American continent, making it the second-largest country in the world after Russia. The country is sparsely populated, with most of its 35.5 million residents living within 125 miles of the U.S. border. Canada’s expansive wilderness to the north plays a large role in Canadian identity, as does the country’s reputation of welcoming immigrants.GDP of $1.74 trillion, GDP PER CAPITA, PPP of $50,661 and POPULATION of 37.6 million. READ MORE »
Denmark#4 in Open for Business#12 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Denmark emerged in the 10th century and includes two North Atlantic island nations, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Along with Sweden and Norway, it forms Scandinavia, a cultural region in Northern Europe.READ MORE »GDP$348 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$59,897POPULATION5.81 million
Sweden#5 in Open for Business#9 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Sweden, flanked by Norway to the west and the Baltic Sea to the east, expands across much of the Scandinavian Peninsula and is one of the largest countries in the European Union by land mass. Capital city Stockholm was claimed in the 16th century, and border disputes through the Middle Ages established the modern-day nation.READ MORE »GDP$534 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$55,338POPULATION10.3 million
New Zealand#6 in Open for Business#7 in Best Countries OverallBritish and Polynesian influences course through picturesque New Zealand, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean southeast of Australia. Early Maori settlers ceded sovereignty to British invaders with the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, and European settlers flooded in. Today, 70 percent of Kiwis, a common term for the people of New Zealand after a native flightless bird, are of European descent. A sense of pride has surged among the Maori, the country’s first settlers who now account for about 14 percent, as homeland grievances become more openly addressed.READ MORE »GDP$213 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$45,073POPULATION4.98 million
Norway#7 in Open for Business#13 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Norway is the westernmost country in the Scandinavian peninsula, made up mostly of mountainous terrain. Nearly all of its population lives in the south, surrounding the capital, Oslo. Norway’s coastline is made up of thousands of miles of fjords, bays and island shores. The Norwegians developed a maritime culture, and were active throughout the Viking era, establishing settlements in Iceland and Greenland.READ MORE »GDP$406 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$68,345POPULATION5.35 million
Ireland#8 in Open for Business#23 in Best Countries OverallThe Republic of Ireland is an island nation in the Atlantic Ocean, separated from Britain on the east by the Irish Sea. Nicknamed the Emerald Isle for its well-watered grasslands, the country is known for its rich cultural traditions, lively pub scene and its struggles for independence. The country comprises five-sixths of the island of Ireland – the remaining sixth is Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom. After a bloody fight for independence and civil war in the early 20th century, Ireland became a republic in 1949.READ MORE »GDP$399 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$89,551POPULATION4.93 million
Finland#9 in Open for Business#18 in Best Countries OverallGeography defines the history and culture of Nordic Finland, one of the most northern-reaching countries in the world. Bordered by Scandinavia, Russia, the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, Finland and its vast stretches of heavily forested open land acts as a northern gate between West and East.READ MORE »GDP$269 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$51,521POPULATION5.52 million
Netherlands#10 in Open for Business#10 in Best Countries OverallSituated along the fringes of Western Europe, the Netherlands is a coastal lowland freckled with windmills characteristic of its development around the water. Three major European rivers – the Rhine, Meuse and Schelde – run through neighbors Germany and Belgium into the nation’s busy ports.READ MORE »GDP$910 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$59,675POPULATION17.3 million
Switzerland#1 in Open for Business and #4 in Best Countries Overall
Panama #2 in Open for Business and #51 in Best Countries Overall
Canada #3 in Open for Business and #1 in Best Countries Overall
Denmark#4 in Open for Business#12 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Denmark emerged in the 10th century and includes two North Atlantic island nations, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Along with Sweden and Norway, it forms Scandinavia, a cultural region in Northern Europe.READ MORE »GDP$348 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$59,897POPULATION5.81 million
Sweden#5 in Open for Business#9 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Sweden, flanked by Norway to the west and the Baltic Sea to the east, expands across much of the Scandinavian Peninsula and is one of the largest countries in the European Union by land mass. Capital city Stockholm was claimed in the 16th century, and border disputes through the Middle Ages established the modern-day nation.READ MORE »GDP$534 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$55,338POPULATION10.3 million
New Zealand#6 in Open for Business#7 in Best Countries OverallBritish and Polynesian influences course through picturesque New Zealand, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean southeast of Australia. Early Maori settlers ceded sovereignty to British invaders with the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, and European settlers flooded in. Today, 70 percent of Kiwis, a common term for the people of New Zealand after a native flightless bird, are of European descent. A sense of pride has surged among the Maori, the country’s first settlers who now account for about 14 percent, as homeland grievances become more openly addressed.READ MORE »GDP$213 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$45,073POPULATION4.98 million
Norway#7 in Open for Business#13 in Best Countries OverallThe Kingdom of Norway is the westernmost country in the Scandinavian peninsula, made up mostly of mountainous terrain. Nearly all of its population lives in the south, surrounding the capital, Oslo. Norway’s coastline is made up of thousands of miles of fjords, bays and island shores. The Norwegians developed a maritime culture, and were active throughout the Viking era, establishing settlements in Iceland and Greenland.READ MORE »GDP$406 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$68,345POPULATION5.35 million
Ireland#8 in Open for Business#23 in Best Countries OverallThe Republic of Ireland is an island nation in the Atlantic Ocean, separated from Britain on the east by the Irish Sea. Nicknamed the Emerald Isle for its well-watered grasslands, the country is known for its rich cultural traditions, lively pub scene and its struggles for independence. The country comprises five-sixths of the island of Ireland – the remaining sixth is Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom. After a bloody fight for independence and civil war in the early 20th century, Ireland became a republic in 1949.READ MORE »GDP$399 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$89,551POPULATION4.93 million
Finland#9 in Open for Business#18 in Best Countries OverallGeography defines the history and culture of Nordic Finland, one of the most northern-reaching countries in the world. Bordered by Scandinavia, Russia, the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, Finland and its vast stretches of heavily forested open land acts as a northern gate between West and East.READ MORE »GDP$269 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$51,521POPULATION5.52 million
Netherlands#10 in Open for Business#10 in Best Countries OverallSituated along the fringes of Western Europe, the Netherlands is a coastal lowland freckled with windmills characteristic of its development around the water. Three major European rivers – the Rhine, Meuse and Schelde – run through neighbors Germany and Belgium into the nation’s busy ports.READ MORE »GDP$910 billionGDP PER CAPITA, PPP$59,675POPULATION17.3 million