A Wall Street Journal survey ranks The Bahamas as the most economically free nation in the Caribbean for 2005. The Wall Street Journal’s Index of Economic Freedom, undertaken in conjunction with The Heritage Foundation, ranked The Bahamas 25th out of 149 nations, ahead of all other Caribbean nations included in the survey.
The survey ranks nations on a scale of one to five, with one being the highest level, on what is perceived to be the level of government interference and involvement in the economy in a variety of categories such as trade policy, wages and prices, property rights, government fiscal burden, regulation and government intervention in the economy.
In gaining the 25th spot, The Bahamas received an overall score 0f 2.5, the same score it achieved in 2004.