Just to clarify for anyone who is puzzled: a higher ranking in that survey means that a nation is perceived to be less corrupt. So the U.S.'s 16th-place ranking

Just to clarify for anyone who is puzzled: a higher ranking in that survey means that a nation is perceived to be less corrupt. So the U.S.'s 16th-place ranking means that it is perceived to be the 16th least corrupt nation. Saying that "[t]he US is 16th in the world in perceived corruption" seems to imply the opposite, to my ears.