Berlin — An international watchdog says Canada is tied for eighth place in a survey that examined levels of corruption in 180 countries.

International watchdog says war-ravaged Somalia remains the world’s most corrupt country, followed by Afghanistan, Myanmar and Sudan. Transparency International says New Zealand is the most principled country, followed by Denmark, Singapore and Sweden.

It says the top rankings are partly due to political stability and long-established conflict of interest regulations.

Canada is tied for eighth place with Australia and Iceland – up one spot from the 2008 survey – while the United States is ranked 19th.

The Transparency International website did not include any specific reasons for the Canadian ranking.

The annual ranking from the Berlin-based agency drew on surveys of businesses and experts.

-With file from The Associated Press