the 2022 Global Cities Report

PhotobyPeterZajcZerjav Kearney,Toronto Readinessforthestorm: the2022GlobalCitiesReport Executivesummary Readinessforthestorm:the2022GlobalCitiesReportexplorestheacutechallengesanduncertaintiesfacingmanyoftheworld’smostconnectedandinfluentialurbancenters.Thetentativerecoveryfromthecoronaviruspandemic—aprimarythemeofthe2021report—hasmetwith aseriesofharshrealitiesoverrecentmonths.Thesehaveincludedhigher-than-expectedinflationworldwide;aworse-than-anticipatedslowdown inChina;theongoingeconomicandpoliticalreverberationsoftheconflictinUkraine;andtheintensifyingeffectsofclimate-relatedhazards.Theseeventstogetherhaveresultedinatimeofintensepressurethatwillrequireadaptationandproactivechange,ensuringcitiesremaincapableofofferinguniquevaluetothecompaniesandcommunitiesthatcallthemhome. Bytheirverynature,globalcities—whichwebroadlydefineasmajormetropolitanareasthatareuniquelyinternationalintheirconnectivityandcharacter—areespeciallyvulnerabletotheglobalcrisesthataredisruptinginternationalflowsofcapital,people,andideas.Yettheyarealsovitaltoanyaspirationsforrestoredprosperity.Thesecitiesarepowerful enginesofdynamismandinnovation,andtheirhealthisanimportantbarometerofpresentandfutureprospects—notonlyforcitydwellers,butforallofus. ThisappreciationoftheirreplaceableroleofurbancentersistheimpetusbehindKearney’sannualGlobalCitiesReport,whichwasdesignedinconjunctionwithtopacademicandbusinessadvisorsfromaroundtheworld.Eachyear,welookatthecurrentconditionsofcitiesandtheinvestmentstheyaremakingintheirfutures,inourGlobalCitiesIndex(GCI)andGlobalCitiesOutlook(GCO). TheGCI’srankingsofthetopcitiesin2022reflecttheself-reinforcingstrengthoftheworld’sleadingglobalcities.Thetopfourcitiesonthelist—NewYork,London,Paris,andTokyo—areunchangedfrom 2021(seefigure1). Figure1 Top10inthe2022GlobalCitiesIndex Source:Kearney2022GlobalCitiesReport City2022rank2021rankΔ2021–2022 NewYork 1 1 — London 2 2 — Paris 3 3 — Tokyo 4 4 — Beijing 5 6 +1 LosAngeles 6 5 –1 Chicago 7 8 +1 Melbourne 8 12 +4 Singapore 9 9 — HongKong 10 7 –3 Readinessforthestorm:the2022GlobalCitiesReport1 IftheGCIisapictureofthepresent,theGCOisaforecastofthefuture.Thissectionwillhelptoidentifythecitieslikeliesttoassumeandsustainleadershiprolesintheyearstocome.WhilesomeoftheleadingcitiesintheIndex—suchasLondon,Paris,andNewYork—appearinthetop10onbothlists,theGCOisdesignedtospotlightnotonlythewell-establishedleaders,butalsothosecitiesbestpositionedtochallengetheirsupremacy.Thetop10citiesonthisyear’sGCOareshowninfigure2. Eachyear,wealsotakeaneyetowardthefutureandofferourperspectiveonwayscityleaderscansuccessfullynavigatethenear-termoperatingenvironment.Inthe“Facinganeconomicstorm”sectionofthisyear’sreport,weidentifythechallengesthatcitiesencounterastheworldemergesfromwhatweallhopeistheworstofthecoronaviruspandemic,andheadsintowhatmanyexpecttobeanextremelychallengingeconomic period.Thosechallengesincludeinflation,stagnantgrowth,risingdebts,andworseninginequality.Weexaminethesechallengesandofferconcretepathwaysofactionforpolicymakerstoaddressthemhead-onwhilemaintainingandenhancingtheircity’spositionasanattractivehubfortalentand,consequently,forbusinesses. Globalcitiesarepowerfulenginesofdynamismandinnovation,andtheirhealth isanimportantbarometerofpresentandfutureprospects. Figure2 Top10inthe2022GlobalCitiesOutlook Source:Kearney2022GlobalCitiesReport City2022rank2021rankΔ2021–2022 London 1 1 — Paris 2 2 — Luxembourg 3 11 +8 Munich 4 3 –1 Stockholm 5 6 +1 NewYork 6 18 +12 Dublin 7 5 –2 Copenhagen 8 21 +13 AbuDhabi 9 4 –5 Amsterdam 10 20 +10 Readinessforthestorm:the2022GlobalCitiesReport2 Introduction The2022GlobalCitiesReportcomesatatimeofextremepressureforcities,whichfaceintenseeconomicchallengesanduncertaintyaboutwhatliesahead.Lastyear’sreportfocusedonthetentativerecoveryfromthecoronaviruspandemic,butwenowhavetocontendwiththeharshrealitiesthathaveariseninrecentmonths—someofthemrelatedtoCOVID-19’slingeringpresence,somenot. Theserealitieshaveincludedhigher-than-expectedinflationworldwide;aworse-than-anticipatedslowdowninChina;theongoingeconomicandpoliticalreverberationsoftheconflictinUkraine;andtheescalatingeffectsofclimatechange,manifestingincalamitiessuchasextremeheat,historicdroughts,andincreasinglyintensestormactivity.Eachoneofthesefactorshaspotentiallyseveresecondaryeffects. Totakeoneexample,theeconomiceffectsoftheconflictinUkrainecontinuetoreverberatearoundtheworld.Highercommodityprices,supplychaindisruptions,andworseningconsumersentimentarelikelytoimpaireconomiesinseveralpartsoftheworld,particularlyEurope;theCaucasusandCentralAsia;theMiddleEastandNorthAfrica;andsub-SaharanAfrica.Evenbeyondthisalready expansivemapofpotentialdeprivationandsuffering,priceincreasesforfoodandfuelwillhurtlower-incomehouseholdsthroughouttheworld,includingintheAmericasandAsia. Globalcitiesserveasamicrocosmofthedynamicsthatshapeourworld,fromsupplychainstoimmigrationnetworkstotrendsinpopularculture. Bytheirverynature,globalcities—majormetropolitanareasthatareuniquelyinternationalintheirconnectivit