Korea No. 2 in global innovation index

South Korea ranked the second-most innovative country in the world, moving up one notch from last year’s ranking, data showed on Tuesday.

According to data complied by financial news and data provider Bloomberg, Korea ranked No. 2 behind the United States, which topped the list by climbing six notches from last year.

The research indicated progress in Korea’s innovation-related sector as it rose one slot in rankings from last year’s No. 3 spot.

Bloomberg gathered data from 200 countries and graded them on seven measures: R&D intensity, research and development as a percentage of gross domestic product, productivity, high-tech density, researcher concentration, manufacturing capability, tertiary efficiency and patent activity.

Korea’s productivity ranked relatively low at 32nd, while it made the top 10 in the six other measures. The nation’s patent activity ranked first among the 50 countries in the ranking.

Finland, which topped the ranking last year, fell to fourth place, while Japan and China ranked sixth and 29th, respectively.



By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)