US rises on spend index; Saudi Arabia and Australia fall

Holland-based design firm Arcadis has conducted a survey which shows that despite uncertainty in an election year, the U.S. made the top 10 for the first time in a biannual ranking of 41 global markets for infrastructure investment potential. The U.S. ranked No. 8 this year from No. 11 in 2012, while higher business risk pushed Australia to No. 11 from No. 9 and market shrinkage dropped Saudi Arabia to No. 15 from No. 12. The study, completed before the U.K. Brexit vote to leave the European Union, assessed each nation?s investment lures, including the ease of doing business, tax rates, GDP per capita, government policy, existing infrastructure quality and availability of debt finance. The top five countries for investment are Singapore, Qatar, the UAE, Canada and Malaysia, while Pakistan, Egypt, Greece, Argentina and Venezuela ranked lowest. Impacts on British infrastructure investment from the June 23 Brexit vote will be unclear for months.