Press Release: Enterprises must boost innovation as global competition becomes stronger

Almost all Member States have improved their innovation performance according to the Innovation Union Scoreboard 2011 issued in February 2012.. However, innovation performance growth is slowing down and the EU is not closing the persistent gap with global innovation leaders US, Japan and South Korea. The largest gap for the EU27 remains in terms of private sector innovation.

The EU still maintains a clear lead over the emerging economies of China, Brazil, India, Russia, and South Africa. However, China is improving its innovation performance and is catching up progressively. Within the EU, Sweden confirms its position at the top of the overall ranking, followed closely by Denmark, Germany and Finland (see complete ranking below). Firms' innovation activities stand out as an important factor to achieve top positions at EU and international level.

European Commission: Memo/12/74: The Innovation Union Scoreboard: Monitoring the innovation performance of the 27 EU Member States http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/12/74&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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