NEW YORK — A new report says China has joined the world's top 20 most innovative economies for the first time while the United States has fallen out of the five top-ranked countries.
The Global Innovation Index 2018 is co-sponsored by the U.N. World Intellectual Property Organization. It keeps Switzerland in the No. 1 spot, followed by the Netherlands, Sweden, United Kingdom and Singapore.
The United States fell from fourth in 2017 to sixth this year, while China jumped from 22nd to 17th.
WIPO Director General Francis Gurry said Tuesday that China's ranking represents a breakthrough for its economy, which is rapidly transforming and prioritizing research and ingenuity.
The index is published annually by WIPO, Cornell University and INSEAD, the graduate business school.