New York, London, Are Top Financial Centres – Again

New York, London, Are Top Financial Centres – Again

The 17th Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), published this week, has shown that once again New York and London are the world’s two leading Financial Centres, just as they were in the previous survey. And, also as in the 16th Index, their ratings are virtually identical, with just one point separating them. Out of the 1,000 points which could be awarded, New York has a rating of 785; London 784.

The GFCI was created in 2005 and first published by Z/Yen Group in March 2007. The Index provides profiles, ratings and rankings for Financial Centres, drawing on two separate sources of data – instrumental factors and responses to an online survey from 3,527 financial services professionals. Areas assessed include diversity, connectivity and the speciality of each centre.

The GFCI is updated and republished each September and March. The research looks at 96 Financial Centres. This includes 82 main centres and a further 14 “associate centres”, which will eventually join the full index when they receive sufficient assessments.

As well as New York and London – by some way the outstanding Financial Centre in Europe – the centres in third and fourth place are as in the last report: Hong Kong and Singapore. Interestingly, Tokyo has risen to fifth place, overtaking San Francisco. The Japanese capital is gradually re-establishing its reputation, after the country’s economy took a battering in the last 20 years. But Tokyo still falls short of the top four in all categories.

Further down the list, Asia/Pacific centres have tended to improve their performance. Shanghai, for example, lies in 16th place, but this is four places higher than in the previous Index. Indeed, 11 of the top 12 centres in Asia/Pacific saw a rise in their ratings and rankings. South Korea’s second city, Busan, had the largest rise, followed by Shenzhen and Taipei. The Chinese centres all rose and Dalian, a new entry to the index, took 51st place.

In Europe, not only did London remain well ahead of the rest but the next four centres – Zurich, Geneva, Luxembourg, Frankfurt – all remain in the same order as previously. A notable improvement among the European centres is Dublin, reflecting the improvement in the Irish economy following the world-wide recession which hit Ireland so badly. Before 2008, Dublin used to be in the top 30; in the last Index it had slipped to 70th position; it is now up to 52.

It is perhaps not surprising that the Financial Centres which performed worst were in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The highest of these centres, in 44th place, is Istanbul, but this is two down on last time. Almaty, Prague and Warsaw also all saw their ratings decline.

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