Currently, Madrid is placed 36th in the global classification, ahead of cities such as Las Vegas, Dublin or Vienna, dropping nine levels compared to the previous year, when it was the city showing the greatest growth in the world. This ranking is headed by New York, while London suffered from Brexit and lost its second place to Los Angeles.
The publication “Winning in Growth Cities” also elaborates on classifications of the fifty large cities which are best placed on the economic, financial, technological scale, with the best air connectivity and which attract young people. These are precisely the categories which most determine foreign investment, according to the experts. Madrid stands out in attracting young talent, at position 22 on the scale, surpassing Rome, Miami and Shanghai. Also, it is one of the cities with the best air connectivity (21st position) and on the economic scale last year’s performance is repeated (40th), beating Brussels, Frankfurt and Sydney.
Barcelona also does well on the world scale. The city occupies 16th position in the classification of populations with the best air connectivity, better than cities such as Berlin, Toronto and New York. In fact, on this scale, there are two more Spanish cities, Palma (32nd position and Málaga (49th). Barcelona also repeats its success in the classification of cities with the best quality of life, at 39th position, more than London, New York and Los Angeles. Finally, the Catalan capital also appears on the classification for technological hubs (42nd), thus excelling over conurbations on the rise like
Oriol Barrachina, Managing Director of Cushman & Wakefield Spain, gives positive value to these data on a state level. “Brexit has had an impact on European foreign investment and the big capitals on the continent are today better able to attract capital. In this way, Madrid and Barcelona can benefit from this effect. Another positive aspect is the appearance of more Spanish cities in the category rankings, Palma y Málaga, which is, without doubt, good news for the sector”.
According to our source, “Winning in Growth Cities”, the capacity for the attraction of investment in 2017 will also be favourable for Spanish cities, especially in retail. Barcelona is also predicted to experience an upswing as regards logistics.
Photo: Arch Daily