On November 18th, A.T. Kearney, a global management consulting firm, released the 2020 Global Cities Report, revealing the world’s top-performing cities (Global Cities Index) and those with the most potential (Global Cities Outlook). Nanjing ranks 86th and 60th respectively worldwide, and both 6th among the mainland cities.
First released in 2008, Kearney’s Global Cities Report was initiated by Kearney Consulting together with top international scholars and think-tank institutions. Based on facts and public data of more than 150 cities through in-depth analysis, it aims to make a systematic analysis on the international competitiveness and potential of global cities.
Global Cities Index (GCI) ranks cities through 29 indicators across five dimensions (business activity, human capital, information exchange, cultural experience, and political engagement). The Index provides unique insights on the influence, performance and development level of major cities around the world, while comparing the core competitiveness and the differentiation advantages among cities. Global Cities Outlook (GCO) ranks the potential of cities through 13 key indicators, such as environmental performance, infrastructure facilities, and innovation capabilities, across four dimensions (personal well-being, economics, innovation, and governance) .
In the 12th version issued this year, it upgrades the research system of cities’ international competitiveness by increasing the number of emerging cities from 130 of last year to 151. At the same time, indicators have been optimized and extended,adding the metrics of entrepreneurship and public health.
Nanjing maintains 86th position in GCI, with robust performance in human capital and business activity. Boasting a size of tertiary degree equal to that of Shenzhen, Nanjing enters into top 3 among Chinese cities in comprehensive high-level education,and also receives high scores in numbers of expats, international students and schools. In business activity, as another highlight, Nanjing has glaringly scaled up branches of top global services firms, among top 5 in China as the home of unicorn companies.
