Research has shown that Seoul’s urban competitiveness ranks 7th among 48 major cities worldwide.
The Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies held a press briefing on Nov. 9 and announced the 2023 Edition of the Global Power City Index (GPCI). This survey, which began in 2008, is now in its 15th year.
Seoul maintained its 7th-place ranking from last year. Having started at 13th place in the first survey, Seoul climbed to 6th place in 2017 but then declined, dropping to 8th place in 2020 and 2021. Seoul’s return to 7th place last year was sustained in this year’s ranking.
The survey evaluates cities across six categories: Economy, Research & Development (R&D), Cultural Interaction, Livability, Environment, and Accessibility.
Seoul was ranked 15th in Economy, 6th in Research & Development, 11th in Cultural Interaction, 36th in Livability, 14th in Environment, and 20th in Accessibility. While the city saw an improvement in the Cultural Interaction category compared to the previous year, it experienced a decline in rankings in Economy and Accessibility, among others.
The comprehensive first place was taken by London in the U.K., followed by New York in the U.S. in second. Tokyo, Japan stood in third place, while Paris, France; Singapore; and Amsterdam in the Netherlands took the 4th to 6th spots. Dubai, which was 11th last year, climbed three steps to reach the top 10 at 8th place for the first time, while Shanghai, which was 10th last year, fell to 15th place.