DESPITE improved macroeconomic indicators and private sector efficiency, the competitiveness ranking of the Philippines dropped two notches and remained the cellar-dweller among the Asia-Pacific countries covered by the World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) 2011.

The Philippines ranked 41st overall—down from 39th last year—among 59 nations covered by this year’s WCY, which looks into how countries fared last year in four areas: economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency, and infrastructure.