United States Faces Stiff Competition from China and India for the Lead in Innovation, According...

NEW YORK & LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- IMD:

--Automotive, Technology And Internet Sectors Most Vulnerable To Foreign Competition;

--US Policies Needed To Increase US Talent Pool Of Science And Engineering Graduates;

--Apple Computer, Google and 3M Top List Of Most

The results of a quarterly "Fast Track Leadership" survey of business professionals released today suggest that China and India are likely to gain significant market share from the US in the information technology, automotive and Internet sectors. Further, the vast majority of survey respondents (81.1%) believe the US needs to develop policies to increase its number of graduates in engineering and science to maintain its innovative competitive edge against other countries.

The survey, conducted in October 2005 by IMD MBA, Fast Company magazine and Egon Zehnder International, includes responses of 1,962 business professionals in the US and abroad who were asked online quantitative and qualitative questions about the relationship between innovation and business performance. The survey's findings are being published in Fast Company's December issue, now on newsstands, and will be available online at www.fastcompany.com by December 5.

Inroads Against US Market Share

Following are the percentage of respondents who said that they strongly agree or agree with the statement: "China and India's innovativeness is likely to lead to significant market share gains (relative to the US) in several industries."

China          India
                                              -----          -----
    Information Technology                    62.4%          85.7%
    Automotive                                53.9%          12.6%
    Biotechnology                             37.9%          47.6%
    The Internet                              35.7%          61.4%
    Medicine                                  29.3%          43.7%
    Entertainment                             14.6%          23.7%

In addition, more survey respondents agreed (46.6%) than disagreed (27.5%) or held a neutral view (25.9%) that MBA students should pursue jobs in China, India or other fast-emerging markets to advance their creative and innovative talents. Further, most agreed (74.5%) that in today's global market innovation can and should happen anywhere in the world and that US companies should worry less about international rivalry and focus more on where to get things done (74.5%).