London (CNN Business) If you're born in the United States, having wealthy parents matters a great deal to your chances of success, according to a new report.

Individuals born into poorer families have a better chance of owning a home, getting a good education and experiencing a better life than their parents if they are born in Canada than if they are born in the United States. In other words, Canadians have a better shot at the American Dream than Americans do.

That's according to the World Economic Forum's Global Social Mobility Index, which ranks 82 countries on their citizens' ability to fulfill their potential regardless of their socio-economic background.

The report was published Monday to coincide with the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where global income inequality is a recurring theme.

The index ranks economies across five dimensions: health, education, technology access, work (in terms of opportunities, conditions and fair wages), and protection and institutions.

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