(2005-09-23) World Bank Doing Business Regulatory Cost

The Economist on the World Bank's DoingBusiness report - another take on Economic Freedom? Serbia does not often come top of global economic league tables. But according to the World Bank's latest report on "DoingBusiness" around the globe, the country slashed more Red Tape last year than any of the 154 other countries in the study. This January, Serbian entrepreneurs needed 15 days and a deposit of E500 ($650) to start a business, compared with 51 days and E5,000 a year earlier. Taxes are now easier to pay, debts easier to collect and temporary workers easier to hire. As a result, Start Up-s have boomed: the number of registered firms leapt by 42% in 2004. Here are the rankings.