A survey by GlobalEnglish has created the Business English Index (BEI), stated to be the benchmark of Business English competency in the global workplace.
The score levels of the GlobalEnglish Business English Index 2012 survey are:
- 9-10 Advanced – Able to communicate and collaborate much like a native English speaker.
- 7-8 Intermediate – Can take an active role in business discussions and perform relatively complex tasks.
- 4-6 Basic – Able to understand but can’t take an active part in business discussions or perform relatively complex tasks.
- 0-3 Beginner – Able to read and communicate only simple questions and statements, but can’t communicate and understand basic business information during phone calls.
76 Countries took part, with 108,000 total test takers.
The global average was a score of 4.15.
A selection of Country scores:
- 7.11 Philippines
- 6.54 Norway
- 6.45 Estonia
- 6.38 Serbia
- 6.19 Slovenia
- 6.17 Australia (native English Speakers)
- 5.57 India
- 5.53 Singapore
- 5.45 Canada (native English Speakers)
- 5.24 United Kingdom (native English Speakers)
- 5.09 United States (native English Speakers)
- 4.44 China
- 4.37 Switzerland
- 2.28 Japan
Source: www.globalenglish.com/business_english_index
The test takers in the United Kingdom have their English speaking skills rated as: Basic – Able to understand but can’t take an active part in business discussions or perform relatively complex tasks.
The top country in the world, for the use of business English language is: The Philippines
No country, not even England, is ranked as: Able to communicate and collaborate much like a native English speaker.
Full List:
- 7.11 Philippines
- 6.54 Norway
- 6.47 Australia
- 6.38 Serbia
- 6.19 Slovenia
- 6.09 Malaysia
- 5.57 India
- 5.55 Lithuania
- 5.53 Singapore
- 5.45 Canada
- 5.40 Greece
- 5.38 Hong Kong
- 5.31 Finland
- 5.31 Sweden
- 5.28 Indonesia
- 5.24 United Kingdom
- 5.23 Bulgaria
- 5.18 Egypt
- 5.10 Netherlands
- 5.09 United States
- 5.07 Poland
- 5.01 Oman
- 4.94 Dominican Republic
- 4.86 Republic of Korea
- 4.81 Denmark
- 4.73 Panama
- 4.69 Tunisia
- 4.65 Portugal
- 4.56 Romania
- 4.55 VietNam
- 4.54 Austria
- 4.54 France
- 4.52 Thailand
- 4.49 Argentina
- 4.44 China
- 4.43 Costa Rica
- 4.37 Switzerland
- 4.32 Germany
- 4.27 Uruguay
- 4.26 Guatemala
- 4.24 United Arab Emirates
- 4.22 Algeria
- 4.18 Spain
- 4.15 Puerto Rico
- 4.11 Czech Republic
- 4.11 Luxembourg
- 4.06 Paraguay
- 3.91 Bolivia
- 3.89 Congo
- 3.84 Sudan
- 3.80 Italy
- 3.79 Hungary
- 3.76 Ukraine
- 3.72 Belgium
- 3.66 Angola
- 3.60 Russian Federation
- 3.54 Kazakhstan
- 3.50 Mexico
- 3.48 Slovakia (Slovak Republic)
- 3.46 Mozambique
- 3.40 Japan
- 3.40 Venezuela
- 3.33 Ecuador
- 3.32 Morocco
- 3.06 Peru
- 2.97 Turkey
- 2.95 Brazil
- 2.90 Israel
- 2.90 Saudi Arabia
- 2.89 El Salvador
- 2.76 Chile
- 2.75 Colombia
- 2.67 Honduras
- 2.28 Taiwan
- 2.06 Cote D’Ivoire
- 0.73 Armenia
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