New firm creation is one of the most important facets of modern economic life. Firm creation is central to national economic development and new firms are a primary feature of the mechanisms underlying structural changes as economies adapt and grow, reflecting the emergence of new industries producing new products with new production technologies. Only in the last several decades has it been possible to develop precise assessments of the scope and impact of business creation.

New Firm Creation employs procedures, which have been developed and implemented in over 75 countries, for identifying representative samples of those active in business creation, to explore business creation from a global perspective. It asks the question - what national characteristics are associated with differences in business creation? Following a discussion of 23 different measures of business creation, the author reviews the five major domains that may influence business creation, represented by 25 different measures. Linear additive models are developed that predict variation in business creation showing strong evidence of associations between national characteristics and business creation. Countries in ten world regions are characterized in terms of the features most highly associated with business creation. Finally, implications for policy interventions and future research conclude the discussion.