Berlin Improves in Battling Corruption

According to the latest report by Transparency International, Germany has made strides in countering corruption. Compared to last year, the country has moved up a slot on the organization's anti-corruption index to position 15. "In an international comparison, Germany is seen as being a little less corrupt than in the previous year," said Hansjörg Elshorst, head of the German branch of Transparency International (TI). This is good news for the economy, because corruption scares off foreign investors, he said. Nonetheless, the statistical director of the study estimated the economic losses through corruption to be about €50 billion ($63 billion). Germany's improved standing in the past few years is largely attributed to the absence of any major political and economic scandal. Leading the list of least corrupt countries this year were again the Scandinavian countries, with Finland topping the list. In Europe, Poland ranked the lowest at position 67, while the would-be EU candidate Turkey came in at number 77.