The Index of Economic Freedom 2003-2006 rankings show the historical development of Economic Freedom

Economic freedom

Economic freedom is a term used in economic and policy debates. As with freedom generally, there are various definitions, but no universally accepted concept of economic freedom...

 as gauged annually by the Heritage Foundation

Heritage Foundation

The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...

 and the Wall Street Journal.

Current ratings are available.

Countries that shared the same rank received a tie score. For example, in 2006 Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

 and the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 tied for the rank of 5th most economically free country.

• Overall, 99 countries worldwide were freer in 2006 than they were the previous year and 51 are less free. Five countries remained in the same degree of freedom.
• The 10 most-improved countries in 2006 were: Pakistan, Romania, Kyrgyzstan, Suriname, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Georgia, Turkey, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan.
• The 10 countries which showed least improvement in 2006 were: Iran, Italy, Guinea, Bolivia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Sri Lanka, Equatorial Guinea, Egypt and Nicaragua.

Yearly worldwide index of economic freedom published by The Wall Street Journal The Wall Street Journal The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal.... and the Heritage Foundation Heritage Foundation The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
EWLINE Rank Country Index 2006 2006 2005 2004 2003 1 1.28 1.35 1.34 1.44 2 1.56 1.60 1.61 1.61 3 1.58 1.70 1.79 1.73 4 1.60 1.63 1.76 1.68 5 1.74 1.81 2.05 1.98 5 1.74 1.75 1.84 1.88 7 1.75 1.65 1.76 1.68 8 1.78 1.76 1.85 1.71 9 1.84 1.75 1.70 1.68 9 1.84 1.90 1.85 1.86 9 1.84 1.84 1.93 1.95 12 1.85 1.91 1.98 2.00 12 1.85 1.90 2.00 1.85 14 1.88 1.86 1.91 2.06 15 1.89 1.85 1.84 1.88 16 1.90 1.95 2.09 2.00 16 1.90 2.13 2.00 2.14 18 1.95 2.09 2.13 2.08 19 1.96 2.00 2.08 2.03 19 1.96 1.89 1.95 1.88 21 2.10 2.31 2.39 2.35 22 2.11 2.13 2.24 2.10 23 2.14 2.18 2.19 2.21 24 2.16 2.28 2.46 2.71 25 2.23 2.15 2.13 2.09 26 2.25 2.35 2.41 2.24 27 2.26 2.25 2.25 2.15 27 2.26 2.46 2.53 2.36 27 2.26 2.58 2.63 2.59 30 2.29 2.33 2.35 2.28 30 2.29 2.49 2.55 2.54 30 2.29 2.44 2.43 2.40 33 2.33 2.34 2.36 2.31 34 2.35 2.43 2.44 2.71 36 2.36 2.41 2.41 2.45 37 2.38 2.34 2.48 2.34 38 2.41 2.64 2.70 2.86 39 2.43 2.31 2.41 2.35 40 2.44 2.40 2.55 2.50 41 2.49 2.59 2.81 2.83 42 2.50 2.54 2.40 2.54 42 2.50 2.28 2.31 2.31 44 2.51 2.63 2.68 2.74 45 2.63 2.64 2.64 2.75 46 2.69 2.60 2.55 2.50 46 2.69 2.76 2.66 2.76 46 2.69 2.84 2.86 3.30 49 2.70 2.74 2.83 2.64 50 2.74 2.81 2.75 2.58 50 2.74 2.83 2.79 2.63 52 2.75 2.93 3.10 3.23 52 2.75 2.73 3.14 2.85 54 2.76 2.76 2.81 2.68 55 2.78 2.71 2.69 2.69 55 2.78 2.95 3.06 3.06 57 2.80 2.80 2.85 2.79 57 2.80 3.00 3.09 3.18 57 2.80 2.79 2.78 2.80 60 2.83 2.75 2.85 2.96 60 2.83 2.84 2.90 2.81 62 2.84 2.99 3.05 3.09 63 2.86 2.83 2.88 2.91 64 2.88 2.74 2.98 3.26 65 2.93 2.73 2.65 2.25 66 2.95 3.00 2.70 2.95 67 2.96 2.75 2.64 2.54 68 2.98 2.89 2.90 2.73 68 2.98 2.91 3.16 3.14 68 2.98 3.29 3.14 3.40 71 2.99 3.34 3.41 3.46 71 2.99 3.03 2.81 2.71 73 3.00 3.10 3.13 3.04 74 3.01 2.81 2.75 2.70 74 3.01 3.16 3.30 3.54 74 3.01 3.18 3.16 3.01 77 3.03 2.90 2.99 2.96 78 3.04 3.11 3.18 3.05 78 3.04 3.05 2.81 2.78		EWLINE Rank Country Index 2006 2006 2005 2004 2003 80 3.05 2.90 2.99 3.14 81 3.08 2.98 2.99 3.15 81 3.08 3.20 3.10 3.06 83 3.10 3.04 3.05 3.33 83 3.10 3.11 3.09 3.13 85 3.11 3.41 3.39 3.50 85 3.11 3.08 3.08 3.15 85 3.11 3.15 2.96 2.70 88 3.14 3.18 3.29 3.20 88 3.14 3.26 3.13 3.16 90 3.15 3.28 3.06 3.48 91 3.16 3.21 3.13 3.10 92 3.19 3.03 3.06 3.05 92 3.19 3.58 3.71 3.71 94 3.20 3.41 3.24 3.49 94 3.20 3.30 3.23 3.30 94 3.20 3.23 3.26 3.21 97 3.21 3.18 2.93 2.96 98 3.23 3.30 3.10 3.00 99 3.24 3.41 3.50 3.29 99 3.24 3.14 2.94 2.91 99 3.24 3.16 3.49 3.59 102 3.28 3.43 3.53 3.24 102 3.28 3.28 3.28 3.35 102 3.28 3.40 3.43 3.18 105 3.29 3.25 3.35 3.54 105 3.29 3.33 3.54 3.59 107 3.30 3.49 3.60 3.58 107 3.30 3.49 3.43 3.09 109 3.31 3.45 3.44 3.40 110 3.33 3.73 3.35 3.44 111 3.34 3.45 3.55 3.55 111 3.34 3.51 3.59 3.49 113 3.35 3.61 3.65 3.50 113 3.35 3.29 3.33 3.40 115 3.38 3.48 3.48 3.61 116 3.39 3.54 3.51 3.29 117 3.40 3.63 3.49 3.56 118 3.41 3.51 3.38 3.28 119 3.46 3.60 3.63 3.54 119 3.46 3.49 3.26 3.39 121 3.49 3.53 3.53 3.58 122 3.50 3.61 3.51 3.54 123 3.51 3.43 3.44 3.50 123 3.51 3.45 3.49 3.44 125 3.53 3.54 3.41 3.93 125 3.53 3.55 3.53 3.63 127 3.55 3.33 3.24 3.26 128 3.59 3.43 3.33 3.44 129 3.60 3.93 3.96 4.01 130 3.63 3.65 3.51 3.63 131 3.65 3.80 3.85 3.90 132 3.69       133 3.70 3.73 3.33 3.79 134 3.71 3.59 3.76 3.43 134 3.71 3.68 3.78 3.86 136 3.74 3.58 3.69 3.73 137 3.76 3.78 3.73 3.95 137 3.76 4.05 4.20 4.15 139 3.84 3.75 3.70 3.73 139 3.84       141 3.88 3.95 3.70 3.69 142 3.89 3.83 3.93 3.90 143 3.90 3.80 3.90 3.80 144 3.91 4.05 4.29 4.29 145 3.93 3.90 3.88 3.88 146 4.00 3.95 3.90 3.99 147 4.03 4.09 3.73 3.86 148 4.04 4.36 4.31 4.21 149 4.08 4.33 4.40 4.68 150 4.10 4.24 4.13 4.47 151 4.11 4.04 4.04 4.19 152 4.16 4.09 4.23 3.76 152  Libya 4.16 4.40 4.55 4.47 154 4.23 4.36 4.54 4.63 155  Myanmar 4.46 4.60 4.40 4.35 156 4.51 4.21 4.31 4.30 157 5.00 5.00 5.00 5.00

Note: Due to economic or political instability, in 2006 the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Economy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Sparsely populated in relation to its area, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is home to a vast potential of natural resources and mineral wealth, its untapped deposits of raw minerals are estimated to be worth in excess of US$ 24 trillion, yet the economy of the DRC has declined drastically...

, Iraq

Economy of Iraq

Iraq's economy is dominated by the petroleum sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s, financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and damage to oil export facilities by Iran led the government to implement...

, Papua New Guinea

Economy of Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by the rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. Agriculture provides a subsistence livelihood for the bulk of the population. Mineral deposits, including oil, copper, and gold,...

, Samoa

Economy of Samoa

The economy of Samoa is dependent on agricultural exports, development aid and private family remittances from overseas. The country is vulnerable to devastating storms. Agriculture employs two-thirds of the labor force, and furnishes 90% of exports, featuring coconut cream, coconut oil and copra...

, Serbia and Montenegro

Economy of Serbia and Montenegro

Serbia and Montenegro was a confederated union which existed between 2003 and 2006. The two republics initially formed the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992.The economy of Serbia and Montenegro entered a prolonged decline in 1989...

, Somalia

Economy of Somalia

According to the CIA and the Central Bank of Somalia, despite experiencing civil unrest, Somalia has maintained a healthy informal economy, based mainly on livestock, remittance/money transfer companies and telecommunications. Due to a dearth of formal government statistics and the recent civil...

 and Sudan

Economy of Sudan

Until the second half of 2008, Sudan's economy boomed on the back of increases in oil production, high oil prices, and large inflows of foreign direct investment. GDP growth registered more than 10% per year in 2006 and 2007. From 1997 to date, Sudan has been working with the IMF to implement...

 were not ranked. There was no data for countries with very small populations, including Andorra

Economy of Andorra

Andorra's GDP in 2007 was $3.66 billion, with tourism as its principal component. Attractive for shoppers from France and Spain as a free port, the country also has developed active summer and winter tourist resorts. With some 270 hotels and 400 restaurants, as well as many shops, the tourist trade...

, Antigua and Barbuda

Economy of Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda's economy is service-based, with tourism and government services representing the key sources of employment and income. Tourism accounts directly or indirectly for more than half of GDP and is also the principal earner of foreign exchange in Antigua and Barbuda...

, Bhutan

Economy of Bhutan

The economy of Bhutan, one of the world's smallest and least developed, is based on agriculture and forestry, which provide the main livelihood for more than 60% of the population. Agriculture consists largely of subsistence farming and animal husbandry. Rugged mountains dominate the terrain and...

, Dominica

Economy of Dominica

Agriculture, with bananas as the principal crop, is still Dominica's economic mainstay. Banana production employs, directly or indirectly, upwards of one-third of the work force. This sector is highly vulnerable to weather conditions and to external events affecting commodity prices...

, East Timor

Economy of East Timor

The economy of East Timor is ranked as a lower-middle income economy by the World Bank. It is placed 158th by Human Development Index, indicating a low level of human development. 20% of the population is unemployed, and 52.9% lives on less than US $1.25 a day...

, Grenada

Economy of Grenada

-Economic Overview:Grenada has a largely tourism-based, small, open economy. Over the past two decades, the economy has shifted from one of agriculture-dominant into that of services-dominant, with tourism serving as the leading foreign currency earning sector...

, Liechtenstein

Economy of Liechtenstein

Despite its small size and limited natural resources, Liechtenstein has developed into a prosperous, highly industrialized, free-enterprise economy with a vital financial service sector and living standards on a par with the urban areas of its large European neighbors.Low business taxes - the...

, Micronesia

Economy of the Federated States of Micronesia

The economic activity of the Federated States of Micronesia consists primarily of subsistence agriculture and fishing. The islands have few mineral deposits worth exploiting, except for high-grade phosphate. The potential for a tourist industry exists, but the remoteness of the location and a lack...

, Monaco

Economy of Monaco

This is an overview of the economy of Monaco. Monaco, situated on the French coast of the Mediterranean Sea, is a popular resort, attracting tourists to its casino and pleasant climate....

, San Marino

Economy of San Marino

The economy of San Marino is focussed around industries such as banking, wearing apparel, electronics, and ceramics, tiles, furniture, clothing, paints, fabrics, and spirits/wines. In addition, San Marino sells collectible postage stamps to philatelists...

, Saint Lucia

Economy of Saint Lucia

Saint Lucia is one of the Windward Islands, a group of islands located off the southeast coast of North America. Due to its small size and relative lack of geological resources, its 2000s economy relies primarily on the sale of banana crops, and the income generated from tourism, with additional...

, São Tomé and Príncipe

Economy of São Tomé and Príncipe

The economy of São Tomé and Príncipe, while traditionally dependent on cocoa, is experiencing considerable changes due to investment in the development of its oil industry its territorial waters in the oil-rich waters of the Gulf of Guinea...

, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Economy of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The St. Vincent economy is heavily dependent on agriculture. Bananas alone account for upwards of 60% of the work force and 50% of merchandise exports. Such reliance on a single crop makes the economy vulnerable to external factors. St. Vincent's banana growers benefited from preferential access to...

, Saint Kitts and Nevis

Economy of Saint Kitts and Nevis

The economy of Saint Kitts and Nevis has traditionally depended on the growing and processing of sugar cane; decreasing world prices have hurt the industry in recent years. Tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking activity have assumed larger roles. Most food is imported. The...

, Vatican City

Economy of the Vatican City

The unique, noncommercial economy of Vatican City is supported financially by contributions from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications.The Vatican also conducts worldwide financial...

, Tonga

Economy of Tonga

Tonga's economy is characterized by a large nonmonetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from the half of the country's population that lives abroad, chiefly in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Much of the monetary sector of the economy is dominated, if not owned, by the...

, Tuvalu

Economy of Tuvalu

Lat. and Long. Tuvalu is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. The economy of Tuvalu is constrained by its remoteness and lack of economies of scale...

, and Seychelles.