Mumbai Continues Downward Slide On Global Power City Index

Mumbai has been on a slow downward spiral since the inception of the Global Power City Index (GPCI) report in Tokyo. For the years 2009 up until 2011, Mumbai held the 34th rank, which slipped to 39th during the years of 2012 to 2016. This year, Mumbai slid further down to the 42nd rank.

The annual report, published by The Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute For Urban Strategies, a research institute under Japan’s leading urban developer Mori Building, ranks 44 cities with their power to attract creative individuals and enterprises from around the world — a term the report calls “magnetism”. The cities are ranked with 70 detailed indicators that fall under the broad categories of economy, R&D, cultural interaction, livability, environment and accessibility.

“Global players today are seeking cities not just with a strong business environment, but those additionally offering improved lifestyles: high quality residences, diverse cultural and retail facilities, a stress-free transportation network and a rich natural environment,” Shingo Tsuji, the director of The Mori Memorial Foundation and CEO of Mori Building, said in a statement. “For global cities to thrive, they need to bolster their overall magnetic power; this will help them to attract talent and investment from around the world.”

The city at the topmost position is London, which has been at this spot for 10 consecutive years. Even with uncertainty surrounding the city following Brexit, the report notes that “London’s balanced strengths across several categories mean the city has the potential to turn challenges into opportunities with improved ratings in the categories of GDP Growth Rate and the Level of Political, Economic and Business Risk.”

While New York, in the second place, increased its scores in the economy category because of its Nominal GDP and GDP Growth Rate, it flatlines in its overall score because of weaker ratings in the area of cultural interaction this year.

Seven Asian cities featured in the top 10 when it came to their economy ratings. Among these, Beijing, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong were prominent. Dubai made its debut in the GPCI rankings in 2017 with an overall ranking of 23rd. Dubai’s strengths include “cultural interaction” in which it has been marked 9, and economy at 11th, due to its competitive corporate tax rates and the number of luxury hotel guest rooms. Sydney made its first climb to the Top 10 this year.