Manila (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) - The government's anti-corruption efforts helped push the Philippines' global ranking in terms of economic freedom by 10 notches to 97th among 177 countries and territories.

This was according to the editors of the 2013 Index of Economic Freedom, jointly released by Washington D.C.-based The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal.

Based on the latest annual index, the 19th since it first came out in 1995, the Philippines scored 58.2 out of 100 points.

Such score keeps the Philippines in the category of "mostly unfree" countries or those within the range of 50 points to 59.9 points.

"(The) score is 1.1 points higher than last year, with notable improvements in investment freedom and freedom from corruption outweighing a decline in business freedom," the editors said in a statement.

They added that such score was below the global average of 59.6, but noted that the Philippines' improvement provided contrast to the world's 0.1 point gain.

"The global advance toward economic freedom has ground to a halt," they said. "Since reaching a global peak in 2008, economic freedom has continued to stagnate."

Even then, the editors observed an overall positive trend in 2012, with 91 countries improving their scores compared to 78 that declined.

As for the Philippines, they noted that the government has pursued a series of legislative reforms toward an improved business environment that encourages broader-based job growth.

Still, the editors said Philippine institutions needed "deeper commitment to reform."

Original post:

Philippines up 10 notches in 'economic freedom' list