Global Connectedness Index

DHL has released the first DHL Global Connectedness Index (GCI), a detailed country-by-country analysis of the flows that connect the world. The study indicates that globalization is still not as advanced as most people believe and that continued economic integration could spur global gross domestic product gains of five percent or more. GCI ranks 125 countries according to the depth and breadth of their integration into the world economy and also examines the relationship between global connectedness and welfare. The study documents that global connectedness has enormous room to expand, even among the most “connected” countries.

Download the complete study "Global Connectedness Index"

(Type: Acrobat Reader file, Size: 1.1 MB)

Download Management Summary

(Type: Acrobat Reader file, Size: 496.3 KB)

Experience the Global Connectedness Index

View Animation

Background Information

TOP 10 Findings

Netherlands leads the overall 2011 DHL Global Connectedness Index. Hong Kong (China) tops the rankings in terms of the depth of its international connections relative to the size of its domestic economy, and the United Kingdom leads in terms of the breadth of its connections around the world.
The top 10 countries on the 2011 DHL Global Connectedness Index range in size from the United Kingdom (the world’s sixth largest economy) to Malta, and the top 50 include representatives from every continent except Antarctica.
Absolute levels of globalization today are much lower than commonly thought, which increases the potential gains from raising them.
The lion’s share of international connections is still concentrated among countries that share borders as well as cultural and historical ties.
The leading countries in terms of global connectedness all enjoy very high levels of human and economic development. Larger countries score higher on the global breadth of their connections, and smaller countries excel in terms of the depth of their connectedness.
The depth of global connectedness was hit hard by the financial crisis, but the prevailing trend since 2005 remains one of increasing connectedness.
The breadth of global connectedness has remained fairly stable since 2005; its more gradual evolution reflects the enduring effects of cross-country distances and differences, as well as infrastructure, institutions and relationships built up over decades.
Twelve policy and structural factors identified in this report can explain nearly 80 percent of variation among countries in terms of the depth of their global connectedness.
Public policies that directly target international flows as well as a broader set of policies that improve the domestic business environment can both contribute significantly to improving global connectedness.
Increasing the depth of global connectedness can spur economic growth and help strengthen the recovery by yielding gains that can range as high as trillions of dollars.

Download: TOP 10 Findings

(Type: Acrobat Reader file, Size: 488.8 KB)

Methodology - Globalization Study “DHL Global Connectedness Index 2011”

Download the methodology

(Type: Acrobat Reader file, Size: 389.1 KB)

Video interviews

Interview with Roger Crook, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding, Freight and Professor Pankaj Ghemawat, well-known economist and global strategist.
Watch interviews