Slovenia places 28th among 119 countries, down one spot compared to 2017. It earned high marks for the level of technical skill and knowledge, for example taking 1st place by the number of articles published in scientific journals relative to GDP.

But it performs poorly when it comes to openness to foreign investors and FDI, brain gain, and the regulatory environment.

The report, compiled by Insead Business School in collaboration with temping agency Adecco and Tata Communications, puts Switzerland at the top of the rankings, followed by Singapore and the United States.

Cities are also ranked by attractiveness, and the Slovenian capital Ljubljana fares more poorly than the country overall.

It placed 49th, right behind the Slovak capital Bratislava and ahead of the Italian capital Rome and Brno in the Czech Republic.