Five APAC cities rank in top 10 of world's leading global cities list

Five APAC cities have been listed in the top 10 of the 2024 Global Cities Report, showing that Asia is home to some of the world’s most dynamic and emergent hubs.

The ranking by Kearney, a global management consulting firm, put Tokyo in 4th place, Singapore in 5th, Beijing in 6th, Shanghai in 7th, while Hong Kong ranked in 9th place. These cities came in just below the premier metropolitan powerhouses of the world, with New York 1st place, followed by London and Paris.

Kearney’s yearly cities ranking puts the world’s best cities head-to-head. The cities are analyzed according to business activity, human capital, information exchange, cultural experience, and political engagement.

This year’s ranking saw Singapore rise two positions to reach the elite top five, and Shanghai rise an impressive five positions to make it to the top 10. These two cities have witnessed significant improvements in quality of life and economic activity in recent years.

“The continued success of key APAC cities this year highlights their adaptability, and the ability to remain responsive and resilient in the face of the shifting distribution of globalization, to emerge as globally connected as ever,” said Shigeru Sekinada, Region Chair for Asia Pacific at Kearney.

“Leading cities in the region have risen through the ranks bolstered by their steadfast leadership in digital capabilities, further highlighting the central importance of the digital economy in today’s world.”

Retaining its fourth place position for the 10th year in a row, Tokyo has proven to be a leader in business activity and human capital. The city continues to lag behind in the dimension of capital markets, however.

Singapore’s rise in the rankings is driven by the city state’s major boosts in business activity, human capital, and information exchange. A surge in business activity is evidenced by more conferences being held in the city-state and five new unicorns. Other major strong points for Singapore include human capital, ease of entry, and huge improvements to their digital infrastructure.

Shanghai, which saw the most notable increase since last year as far as Asian cities in the top 10, also stands out in terms of tech and digital infrastructure. This megalopolis has the second fastest internet in the entire world and a massive data center capacity.

The climate focus

The Kearney index shows that while many global cities have adapted to macroeconomic pressures, they now also face increasing environmental challenges from climate change. Cities, as major energy consumers and greenhouse gas emitters, both suffer from and contribute to climate disasters, which have caused severe financial losses.

“Amidst the threat of climate change, cities have a responsibility and an opportunity to seek solutions to counter the climate crisis,” said Sekinada.

“To do so, they must shift their perspective toward being more systems-oriented and proactive, adopting a regenerative approach. A regenerative mindset involves cities implementing collaborative decision-making and integrated governance, empowering the next generation to prosper, and developing a proactive and cohesive sustainability strategy.”

The Kearney index also measures cities according to their future potential – what they call the Global Cities Outlook. In this forward-looking ranking, the only Asian city to make the top 10 for 2024 is Seoul, the capital city of South Korea, which made fifth place after rising a remarkable nine positions.