Hong Kong took joint first place with the US in the 2011 World Competitiveness Rankings, a survey of 59 economies compiled by the Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development. Hong Kong had come second behind Singapore in the 2010 rankings. Hong Kong scored highly for both public-sector and private-sector efficiency. Mainland China was ranked 19th, with private-sector efficiency outranking government efficiency by a wide margin.

Singapore, which is often seen as Hong Kong's closest rival in Asia, dropped to third place in the latest rankings owing to its high cost of living. However, despite Hong Kong's perceived greater competitiveness, Singapore's economy is expected to overtake that of Hong Kong in size in 2012. IMF forecasts show Singaporean GDP reaching US$254bn next year, US$10bn above that of Hong Kong. Moreover, GDP per head in Singapore is expected to rise to US$48,000, well above Hong Kong's US$34,000.