2018 Global Cities Report

Learning from the East: Insights from China's Urban Success

A.T. Kearney's eighth Global Cities report highlights regional trends revealed over the past decade and examines what defines the world's most influential cities.

A.T. Kearney’s Global Cities has been collecting data on these factors and others for the world’s most important cities since 2008. The A.T. Kearney 2018 Global Cities report examines which global cities are improving in their competitiveness and what factors are driving that success. In an era of increased localization, challenges to trade, and a rise in populist sentiments around the world, the results of this report go beyond simply ranking cities. Instead, this analysis reveals which global cities are primed for urban transformation and growth—and those that are falling behind.

Even more, the 2018 report shows how commitments to key areas such as innovation, transparency, and information exchange will define the next generation of the world’s most influential cities. In the US, you need only look at the headlines surrounding Amazon’s search for its second headquarters to intuit the importance of understanding why some seem to grow, thrive, and attract continued investment while others miss out.

This year, the report includes information on some of the expected top cities—places such as New York and San Francisco. But it also chronicles the remarkable rise of China’s super cities and how a comprehensive approach to urbanization is paying off in spades for the global powerhouse.