A Chinese think tank has ranked South Korea as the most competitive nation in Asia.

The Research Institute of Boao Forum for Asia released its first Asian competitiveness report for this year. Of the 35 surveyed countries, South Korea topped the list in overall competitiveness, followed by Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong.

By category, Korea ranked first in business administration efficiency and second in human resources and innovation.

In a corporate competitiveness survey on 29-thousand Asian companies, Samsung Electronics ranked sixth and Hyundai Motor 14th.

Chinese oil firm PetroChina came in first, with Japanese automaker Toyota trailing in second place.