Chinese Cities of Opportunity 2024

Identifying diverse and multifaceted urban opportunities

The vigour and vitality of cities derive from the continuous process of development and progress. The world today is going through profound changes unseen in a century, amidst this historical cycle, where opportunities and challenges coexist, Chinese cities have not ceased their efforts to seek new development opportunities and explore new economic growth potential. They are entrusted with the mission to promote industrial innovation with sci-tech innovation and to develop new quality productivity forces featuring high-tech, high-efficiency, and high-quality. In the pursuit of promoting the high-quality development of new urbanisation, it will be an important goal and direction for a certain period in the future to drive regional coordinated development and urban-rural integration based on urban clusters and modern metropolitan areas.

“Chinese Cities of Opportunity 2024” provides a comprehensive observation of Chinese cities from 10 dimensions and 50 variables. From the observation results, it is evident that the top cities excel in balanced development, ranking prominently across multiple dimensions, thereby showcasing their robust overall strength. Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou continue to lead the development of Chinese cities, with Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, Wuhan, Qingdao, and Chengdu following closely in the top ten. Notably, Beijing and Shanghai clinch the top spots in three dimensions each, while Shenzhen secures the first position in two dimensions. Qingdao ranks first in the “transportation and urban planning” dimension and holds the tenth rank in the “economic clout” dimension. Ningbo leads in the “sustainable development” dimension and ascends to the top ten in both the “economic clout” and “ease of doing business” dimensions. Wuxi, Foshan, and Dongguan ranks in the top ten in the dimensions of “technology and innovation”, “transportation and urban planning”, and “ease of doing business”, respectively. Cities like Hefei, Shenyang, Changzhou, Nantong, and Yantai, positioned mid-ranking overall, also demonstrate commendable performance in various dimensions. Please refer to the report for comprehensive insights into specific dimension rankings and analyses.