Doing Business 2008 is the fifth 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 178 economies—from Afghanistan to
Zimbabwe—and over time.
Regulations affecting 10 stages of a business’s life
are measured: starting a business, dealing with licenses,
employing workers, registering property, getting credit,
protecting investors, paying taxes, trading across borders,
enforcing contracts and closing a business. Data in
Doing Business 2008 are current as of June 1, 2007. The
indicators are used to analyze economic outcomes and
identify what reforms have worked, where, and why.