Monday, August 18, 2014

London- World City #1

......Beyond these traditional strengths, London has become Europe’s top technology startup center......upward of 3,000 tech startups.....Google’s largest office outside Silicon Valley......
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East or West....London is the best. Singapore (4), Hong Kong (6), and Dubai (7) are ranked ahead of Beijing (8, tie with Sydney) and Shanghai (19).  
Dubai ahead of Shanghai, really?

Frankfurt is the top rated city in Germany at a lowly #14. Mumbai (31) and Delhi (34) are the top-ranked cities in South Asia (in the future we may see Chennai and Bangalore on this list). Surprising to see Berlin (37) tied with Seattle and Tel Aviv.
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In order to quantify cities’ global influence, we looked at eight factors: the amount of foreign direct investment they have attracted; the concentration of corporate headquarters; how many particular business niches they dominate; air connectivity (ease of travel to other global cities); strength of producer services; financial services; technology and media power; and racial diversity. (Click here for a more detailed description of our methodology.) 
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We found those factors particularly important in identifying rising stars that, someday, might challenge the current hegemony of our two top-ranked global cities, London and New York.
Inertia and smart use of it is a key theme that emerged in our evaluation of the top global cities. No city better exemplifies this than London, which after more than a century of imperial decline still ranks No. 1 in our survey.  
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The United Kingdom may now be a second-rate power, but the City’s unparalleled legacy as a global financial capital still underpins its pre-eminence.
Ranked first in the world on the Z/Yen Group’s 2013 Global Financial Centres Index, which we used for our list, London not only has a long history as a dominant global financial hub, but its location outside the United States and the eurozone keeps it away from unfriendly regulators. Compared to New York, it is also time-zone advantaged for doing business in Asia, and has the second best global air connections of any city after Dubai, with nonstop flights at least three times a week to 89% of global cities outside of its home region of Europe.
A preferred domicile for the global rich, London is not only the historic capital of the English language, which contributes to its status as a powerful media hub and major advertising center, but it’s also the birthplace of the cultural, legal and business practices that define global capitalism.

London hosts the headquarters of 68 companies on the 2012 Forbes Global 2000 list and is a popular location for the regional HQs of many multinationals. (Our HQ ranking component, in which London ranks third, is based on GaWC’s 2012 Command and Control Index, which factors in company size and financial performance, as well as total number of Forbes Global 2k HQs).
Beyond these traditional strengths, London has become Europe’s top technology startup center, according to the Startup Genome project. The city has upward of 3,000 tech startup sas well as Google’s largest office outside Silicon Valley.

New York, which comes in a close second in our study (40 points to London’s 42), is home to most of the world’s top investment banks and hedge funds, and the stock trading volume on the city’s exchanges is more than 10 times that of London.
Like London, New York is a global leader in media and advertising, the music industry (home to two of the big three labels), and also one of the most important capitals of the fashion and luxury business. With iconic landmarks galore, international visitors spend more money in New York each year than in any other city in the world.

Those Slowly Fading
London and New York are clearly the leaders but they are not the hegemonic powers that they were throughout much of the 20thcentury, and their main competitors are now largely from outside Europe. Paris may rank third in our survey, but it is way below New York and London by virtually every critical measure, and the city’s future is not promising given that France, and much of the EU, are mired in relative economic stagnation.

China’s Global Cities

Hong Kong still enjoys greater freedom than the rest of China and remains the largest financial center in the Asia-Pacific region, ranking third in the world after London and New York. The vast majority of the world’s major investment banks, asset managers, and insurance companies maintain their Asia-Pacific headquarters in the former British colony.
But its preeminence is being threatened by Shanghai, traditionally Hong Kong’s chief rival, and Beijing. We ranked China’s capital eighth, ahead of Shanghai (19th). With the advantage of being the country’s all-powerful political center, Beijing is the headquarters of most large state-owned companies and is home to the country’s elite educational institutions and its most innovative companies.
But right now the leading global city in East Asia is Singapore, which ranks fourth on our list. With a relatively small population of just over 5 million, Singapore’s basic infrastructure is among the best on the planet. Like Hong Kong, it also benefits from a tradition of British governance and law, one reason the World Bank ranked its business climate the world’s best; China ranked 96th. Singapore’s justice system is ranked 10th in the world in The Rule of Law Index.

Global Capital of the Middle East
Much of what we see in the media about Middle Eastern cities are scenes of destruction and chaos. Yet in a relatively quiet corner of the Arabian Peninsula, Dubai is ascending, ranked seventh on our list. 

Its globalization strategy hinges largely on its expanding airport, which includes the world’s largest terminal and an even larger airport under construction. It ranks first in the world in our air connectivity ranking, with nonstop flights at least three times a week to 93% of global cities outside of its home region.Its hub location and business-friendly climate have made it a favorite for companies looking to establish a Middle East headquarters or point of presence. As a crossroads of humanity, Dubai is unparalleled among global cities for its diversity: 86% of its residents are foreign born.
North America
Our rankings rewarded cities that are both ethnically diverse and, in some cases, dominate a critical industry. This is what we refer to as a “necessary city,” a place one must go to conduct business in a particular field, or to service a particular region of the world.
This focus on the “necessary” city led to what will no doubt be a controversial result: a 10th place ranking for the San Francisco Bay Area, on the strength of its central role in the tech industry, tied on our list with Los Angeles and Toronto. The Bay Area did not even make the top 20 in the 2014 A.T. Kearney rankings, which placed both Chicago and Los Angeles in the top 10.

Other North American cities with a growing global footprint include 10th ranked Toronto, tied with Los Angeles and Bay Area. Toronto, as the economic capital of Canada, has becomes a focus for international investment into that stable and resource rich country. It is also among the most diverse cities on the planet — 46 % of its population is foreign born.
Rising Stars
In North America up and comers include No. 14 Houston, with its domination of the U.S. energy industry, a huge export sector and an increasingly diverse population. The Washington, D.C., metro area ranks 16th, a testament to the capital’s growth as an aerospace and technology center.
Overseas, other urban centers that could move up in the future include No. 16 Seoul, Shanghai and No. 20 (tie) Abu Dhabi. But outside of Dubai no other cities in our top 20 come from the developing world. The Indian megacities Delhi and Mumbai rank in the low 30s along with Johannesburg in South Africa. In Latin America, the place to watch is No. 23 Sao Paulo.

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No. 1: London

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 328
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 68<
Air Connectivity:  89%*
Global Financial Centres Index Rank: 1

* The air connectivity score is the percentage of other global cities outside the city’s region (e.g., for London, cities outside of Europe) that can be reached nonstop a minimum of three times per week.

No. 2: New York

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 143
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 82
Air Connectivity:  70%
GFCI Rank: 2


No. 3: Paris

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 129
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 60
Air Connectivity:  81%
GFCI Rank: 29


No. 4: Singapore

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 359
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: N/A
Air Connectivity:  46%
GFCI Rank: 4


No. 5: Tokyo

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 83
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 154
Air Connectivity:  59%
GFCI Rank: 5


No. 6: Hong Kong

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 234
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 48
Air Connectivity:  57%
GFCI Rank: 3


No. 7: Dubai

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 245
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: N/A
Air Connectivity:  93%
GFCI Rank: 25


No. 8 (TIE): Beijing

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 142
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 45
Air Connectivity:  65%
GFCI Rank: 59


No. 8 (TIE): Sydney

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 111
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 21
Air Connectivity:  43%
GFCI Rank: 15


No. 10 (TIE): Los Angeles

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 35
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: N/A
Air Connectivity:  46%
GFCI Rank: N/A


No. 10 (TIE): San Francisco Bay Area

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 49
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 17
Air Connectivity:  38%
GFCI Rank: 12


No. 10 (TIE): Toronto

FDI Transactions (5-Year Avg.): 60
Forbes Global 2000 HQs: 23
Air Connectivity:  49%
GFCI Rank: 11


Remaining Cities


City Region Rank
Zurich Europe
13
Frankfurt Europe
14
Houston North America
14
Amsterdam/Randstad Europe
16
Seoul Asia-Pacific
16
Washington Metropolitan Area North America
16
Shanghai Asia-Pacific
19
Abu Dhabi Middle East
20
Chicago North America
20
Moscow Europe
20
Boston North America
23
Brussels Europe
23
Dallas-Fort Worth North America
23
Madrid Europe
23
Melbourne Asia-Pacific
23
São Paulo South America
23
Istanbul Middle East
29
Miami North America
29
Johannesburg Africa
31
Kuala Lumpur Asia-Pacific
31
Mumbai Asia-Pacific
31
Bangkok Asia-Pacific
34
Delhi Asia-Pacific
34
Geneva Europe
34
Atlanta North America
37
Berlin Europe
37
Seattle North America
37
Tel Aviv Middle East
37
Mexico City North America
41
Milan Europe
41
Montreal North America
41
Buenos Aires South America
44
Jakarta Asia-Pacific
44
Philadelphia North America
44
Cairo Middle East
47
Guangzhou Asia-Pacific
47
Ho Chi Minh City Asia-Pacific
47
Lagos Africa
47
Osaka Asia-Pacific
47
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Link: the-worlds-most-influential-cities

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regards

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