Doing Business 2013 is the 10th in a
series of annual reports investigating
the regulations that enhance business
activity and those that constrain it. Doing
Business presents quantitative indicators
on business regulations and the protection
of property rights that can be compared
across 185 economies—from Afghanistan
to Zimbabwe—and over time.
Regulations aff ecting 11 areas of the life
of a business are covered: starting a business,
dealing with construction permits,
getting electricity, registering property,
getting credit, protecting investors, paying
taxes, trading across borders, enforcing
contracts, resolving insolvency and employing
workers. The employing workers
data are not included in this year’s ranking
on the ease of doing business.
Data in Doing Business 2013 are current as
of June 1, 2012. The indicators are used to
analyze economic outcomes and identify
what reforms of business regulation have
worked, where and why.