Najib lauds Malaysia's No 14 ranking in competitiveness

He made the remarks despite his country’s slippage in the rankings, from 12th last year. Thailand dropped one place to 30th, while Singapore overtook Switzerland to rank third. The United States retained the top spot.

Najib said the Institute for Management Development’s annual "World Competitiveness Yearbook" had ranked Malaysia ahead of the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, Britain, South Korea and Japan.

"Despite some naysayers who wish to talk Malaysia down, this is the real story of our economy – years of record investments, sound fundamentals, diversification, reform, sustainability and inclusivity.

"These credible and influential reports highlighting Malaysia’s attractiveness as a preferred destination are testament to the private-public partnership, epitomised by Pemudah," he said when launching the 2014 annual report of the Special Task Force to Facilitate Business (Pemudah).

Najib added that as Malaysia begins the last lap of its journey towards becoming a high-income nation by 2020, the challenges had grown even larger in a globalised and hyper-connected world. He said no country could insulate itself if it was to progress.

"The volatile prices of commodities, the crisis within the euro zone, shifting international balances of power, the spread of terrorism and climate change are just some of the threats we face today.

"Clearly, there is no room for complacency if we are to deliver on our promise of a peaceful, prosperous and progressive Malaysia for the generations yet to come, but I am equally confident that we, as Malaysians all, are up for this challenge.

"Our track record demonstrates that we can, and will, overcome whatever hurdles that are placed in our path," he said.