The Economist Intelligence Unit has ranked Singapore as the third most competitive global city out of a field of 120 global markets.

The most globally competitive cities Click on thumbnail to view. Source: The Economist Intelligence Unit

It follows only New York and London in the report "Hot Spots: Benchmarking global city competitiveness," commissioned by Citi. It also emerged as the highest ranked Asian city in the report done by The Economist's forecasting and advisory arm.

Singapore was highly ranked in the categories of physical capital (ranked joint first overall), financial maturity (joint first), institutional effectiveness (6th) and global appeal (4th).

Mr. Leo Yip, Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board, commented, "Singapore's favorable ranking is testament to our appeal as a global business location, plugged into the heart of a growing Asia. Our strong attributes of trust, knowledge, connectivity and liveability have underpinned our ability to attract investments, business, talent and ideas."

The report defined competitiveness as "the demonstrated ability to attract capital, business, talent and visitors." 120 cities were assessed based on 21 qualitative and 10 quantitative indicators.

Hong Kong, which is tied with Paris for the 4th position, closely followed Singapore - separated by only 0.7 of a point.

Mr. Michael Zink, Head of ASEAN and Citi Country Officer for Singapore said, "We hope the report will help enhance understanding of market competitiveness and enable Singapore to identify ways to strengthen its reputation as a world-class financial and business hub and a great place to live."

ellenja@sph.com.sg