Its neighbour to the south, Switzerland, takes the top seat for the third straight year and is followed by Japan and Canada.

This year, Japan jumped from fifth to second, thereby pushing Germany down a slot from 2018.

More than 20,000 individuals in 36 countries identified as informed elites, business leaders, and members of the public were surveyed online by US News and World Report in collaboration with BAV Group and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Survey participants were asked to assess a set of attributes to 80 countries. Based on the responses, those traits were further grouped into nine sub-categories such as quality of life and entrepreneurship.

Germany no longer leads in entrepreneurship

For the past three years, Germany headed the entrepreneurship category, but fell to the number two position in 2019, with Japan taking the number one seat.

A country's standing in entrepreneurship was, according to US News and World Report, assessed looking at factors such as its connection to the world, educated population, innovation, ease of access to capital and skilled labour force.

These standings come on the heels of Bloomberg´s Innovation Index released Monday. Germany´s standing rose to second place, but was a near equal with number one slot South Korea in total score.

For its index, Bloomberg assesses research and development spending, manufacturing capability and concentration of high-tech public companies.

Germany still respected for power and quality of life

Behind the United States, Russia, and China, Germany maintained its number four rank in the power subcategory of the US News and World Report rankings.

Berlin's comfortable top five position in power is likely due to the country's economic strength and international aid. 

Germany also rounded out the top ten in quality of life. Canada, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Australia, Netherlands, and New Zealand rank higher than Germany that subcategory.

Quality of life was assessed by survey participants for their affordability, job market, economic stability, family friendliness, income equality, politically stability, safety, well-developed public education system, and well-developed public health system.  

The adventure category – or how desirable and “sexy” of a travel destination a country is perceived as – featured Germany´s lowest standing of all the subcategories this year, at 57 out of 80 total points.

Those surveyed viewed Brazil, Italy, and Spain as the destinations most likely to cure their wanderlust. 

Global consumers want Made in Germany

Additional rankings in the 2019 US News and World Report analysis such as best countries for women, best countries for education, and best countries origin index for products were also featured.

Those results show that Germany can be proud of its brand power on a global stage, particularly in the auto industry and health sectors. German brands came out on top in automobiles, health care, and pharmaceuticals.

German technology and electronic brands were also perceived very highly among the survey respondents and were ranked second, behind only Japan.

Vinters in Germany's wine regions should also raise a toast of sekt to the results. After Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal, the German wine industry ranked fifth.