Category: CICI

The China Integrated City Index 2020, compiled by Cloud River Urban Research Institute, was released on Dec. 28. The Index covers 297 Chinese cities at and above the prefecture level, and analyzes and evaluates their sustainable development from three dimensions of environment, society, and the economy in an all-round way.

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I. Rankings of China Integrated City Index 2020

The China Integrated City Index covers 297 Chinese cities at and above the prefecture level, and comprehensively evaluates their development from three dimensions of environment, society, and economy. Each of the three dimensions comprises three major items, and each major item comprises three sub-items, altogether forming a 3×3×3 structure. Each sub-item is supported by multiple indexes, and these indexes are composed of 882 sets of data, of which statistical data account for 31%, satellite remote sensing data for 35%, and internet big data for 34%. In this sense, the China Integrated City Index is an advanced multimodal index system that can use data resources in different fields to gauge and judge cities in a sound way.

The China Integrated City Index 2020 released by Cloud River Urban Research Institute evaluates the COVID-19 response and economic recovery of Chinese cities.

1. Comprehensive ranking

Beijing has topped the comprehensive ranking for five consecutive years, followed by Shanghai in second place and Shenzhen in third.

The top 10 Chinese cities in the comprehensive ranking in 2020 are Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Tianjin, and Suzhou. Chengdu and Nanjing rose to fifth and seventh place, respectively, while Suzhou entered the top 10 and Wuhan dropped out. The 10 cities are located in four city clusters, with four cities in the Yangtze River Delta, two in the Pearl River Delta, two in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and two in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.

The 11th to 30th are Wuhan, Xiamen, Xi’an, Ningbo, Changsha, Zhengzhou, Qingdao, Dongguan, Fuzhou, Kunming, Hefei, Foshan, Wuxi, Jinan, Zhuhai, Shenyang, Guiyang, Dalian, Nanchang, and Quanzhou.

2. Ranking in environment dimension

Shenzhen has ranked first in the environment dimension for five consecutive years, followed by Guangzhou in second place and Shanghai in third.

The top 10 Chinese cities in this dimension in 2020 are Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Xiamen, Sanya, Nyingchi, Shigatse, Chamdo, Beijing, and Haikou. Xiamen, Sanya, and Xigaze rose to fourth, fifth, and seventh place, respectively.

The 11th to 30th are Zhuhai, Dongguan, Chengdu, Zhoushan, Shantou, Shannan, Nanjing, Chongqing, Fuzhou, Danzhou, Foshan, Naqu, Puer,Bazhong, Hangzhou, Kunming, Wuhan, Quanzhou, Zhongshan, and Changsha.

3. Ranking in society dimension

Beijing and Shanghai have ranked first and second, respectively, in the society dimension for five consecutive years, and Guangzhou has remained third for four consecutive years.

The top 10 Chinese cities in this dimension in 2020 are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Nanjing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Tianjin, and Xi’an. Nanjing, Chengdu, and Tianjin rose to fifth, sixth, and ninth place, respectively, while Xi’an entered the top 10 and Wuhan dropped out.

The 11th to 30th are Suzhou, Changsha, Xiamen, Zhengzhou, Jinan, Wuhan, Ningbo, Shenyang, Qingdao, Hefei, Kunming, Fuzhou, Harbin, Wuxi, Nanchang, Guiyang, Nanning, Dalian, Taiyuan, and Changchun.

4. Ranking in economy dimension

Shanghai has topped the ranking in the economy dimension for five consecutive years, and Beijing and Shenzhen have remained second and third, respectively, for five consecutive years.

The top 10 Chinese cities in this dimension in 2020 are Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Suzhou, Chongqing, Tianjin, Hangzhou, and Nanjing. Chengdu jumped to fifth place, while Tianjin and Hangzhou fell in the ranking.

The 11th to 30th are Wuhan, Ningbo, Dongguan, Qingdao, Xi’an, Zhengzhou, Changsha, Xiamen, Wuxi, Foshan, Jinan, Fuzhou, Hefei, Dalian, Kunming, Shenyang, Quanzhou, Wenzhou, Changchun, and Harbin.

The Cloud River Urban Research Institute recently released the China Integrated City Index for 2019, the fourth year in a row since its initiation in 2016.

Jointly developed by Cloud River Urban Research Institute and the Development Planning Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, the index is a system that evaluates growth performance of 297 cities at prefecture level or above across the country.

It measures urban development in three dimensions: environment, society and economy. Under each dimension lies many indicators that support its sub-dimensions at different layers. All of its indicators are supported by 785 data sets, which come from statistical data, satellite remote sensing data, and internet data. 

China Integrated City Index is a multi-modal index that analyzes and measures a city’s development through statistical resources of different fields.

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1. Comprehensive ranking

Beijing has topped the comprehensive ranking for four consecutive years, and is followed by Shanghai and Shenzhen.

The top 10 cities in the comprehensive ranking are Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Tianjin, Nanjing and Wuhan. The ten cities are located in five megalopolises, including three in the Yangtze River Delta Megalopolis, two in the Pearl River Delta Megalopolis, two in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Megalopolis, two in the Chengdu-Chonqqing Megalopolis, and one in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River Delta Megalopolis.

In the comprehensive ranking, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou have been topping the list for four consecutive years with an overwhelming lead. They have their own unique advantages: Beijing has unparalleled advantage in the social ranking, Shanghai tops the economic ranking, Shenzhen occupies the first place in the environmental ranking, and Guangzhou takes a leading role in all the three dimensions.

Chongqing has seen significant growth in the comprehensive ranking, surpassing Tianjin and Hangzhou as it moves to the 5th from the 7th in 2018. On the other hand, Tianjin has fallen from the 5th in the 2018 ranking to the 8th, largely due to its drop in the environmental ranking from 21st to 40th. Hangzhou, Chengdu and Wuhan have remained steady performance.

2. Environmental ranking

Shenzhen has been topping the environmental ranking for four years in a row. In the 2019 ranking, Shanghai and Guangzhou have climbed to 2nd and 3rd.

It is worth noting that CO2 emissions data is included in the China Integrated City Index 2019. Through years of efforts, the Cloud River Urban Research Institute has finally been able to calculate the CO2 emissions of each city through satellite data analysis and GIS analysis, which increased the accuracy and depth of its evaluations on the cities’ performance. Of course, incorporating CO2 emissions in the evaluation system definitely has an impact on the ranking.

The top 10 cities in the environmental ranking are Shenzhen, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Linzhi, Qamdo, Xiamen, Sanya, Beijing, Rikaze, and Haikou.

Shenzhen has been topping the environmental ranking for four years in a row. Shanghai and Guangzhou, which took 8th and 7th, have climbed to 2nd and 3rd, while Beijing has dropped to 8th from 5th in the 2018 ranking.

It is worth noting that Linzhi, Qamdo and Rikaze from Tibet Autonomous Region have made to the top 10 cities in the ranking. As we have obtained more comprehensive data, Tibet is demonstrating more advantages in the environment dimension of the index.

Xiamen, Sanya and Haikou have been long leading in the environmental ranking. Although three cities in Tibet have made to the top 10 ranking, Xiamen still secures its 6th place for three years in a row. Sanya and Haikou have dropped to 7th and 10th respectively.

3. Social ranking

Beijing and Shanghai have been taking the first and second place in the social ranking for four consecutive years, while Guangzhou has secured the third place for three years in a row.

The top 10 cities in the social ranking are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Nanjing, Wuhan and Tianjin.

Beijing and Shanghai have been taking the first and second place in the social ranking for four consecutive years, while Guangzhou has secured the third place for three years in a row.

The social dimension has long been Shenzhen’s weak points. But the city has seen significant increase as it rises from the 8th in 2018 to 4th in 2019. Nanjing also rises from the 10th to 8th in the newest ranking.

Chongqing, Chengdu and Wuhan has secured their places, ranking 6th, 7th and 9th respectively.

Hangzhou drops from 4th to 5th, while Tianjin drops from 5th to 10th.

4. Economic ranking

In the economic ranking, Shanghai has secured the top place, while Beijing and Shenzhen have taken the second and third places respectively for four years straight.

The top 10 cities in the economic ranking are Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Suzhou, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Chengdu and Nanjing.

Over the years, the economic ranking has seen the least changes compared to other rankings, with Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Tianjin and Suzhou occupying the top 6 for four consecutive years. Hangzhou has also secured the 8th in the past two years.

Chongqing and Nanjing take the 7th and 10th in the 2019 ranking, moving two and one places respectively from the previous year. Chengdu drops to the 9th, while Wuhan fails to secure the top 10, ranking only 11th.

The index was compiled by the National Development and Reform Commission’s development planning department and Cloud River Research Institute, who jointly hosted the symposium.

The index evaluates 298 Chinese cities in terms of their society, economy, and environment, while establishing a set of quantitative standards and references for the urbanization and development of Chinese cities.

This year’s report focuses on the theme of “metropolitan area and development strategies.”

On rankings, Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen are followed by Guangzhou, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Nanjing, and Wuhan to round up the top 10.

In the environment category, Shenzhen, Sanya and Haikou take the first three positions, followed by Pu’er, Beijing, Xiamen, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Fuzhou and Chongqing.

In the society category, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou are the top three followed by Hangzhou, Tianjin, Chongqing, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Wuhan and Nanjing.

In terms of the economy index, Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen are the top three cities, followed by Guangzhou, Tianjin, Suzhou, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Chongqing and Wuhan.

 

“Based on indexes of all categories, we can observe a clear evidence of the concentration of functions in big cities as well as the polarization between cities,” said Zhou Muzhi, head of Cloud River Research Institute and the index expert group.

For instance, the top 30 cities account for 42.5 percent of the nation’s total GDP, 74.9 percent of the manufacturing export, 92.8 percent of universities listed in Project 211 and Project 985, and 50.2 percent of Tier 3A hospitals.

As to the number of listed companies on the main board, enterprises from the top 30 cities account for 69.7 percent, among which 39.6 percent are located in the top three cities.

Meanwhile, airports in the top 30 cities have received a large number of visitors, making up 81.3 percent of the total, while container ports in the top 30 have contributed to up to 97.8 percent of the nation’s total throughput.

A major feature of the report is the introduction of the concept of densely inhabited district (DID). The report defines a district with a population density of 5,000 or more per square kilometer as a DID, and it analyzes the relationship between the DID population and key indicators. It found that the DID population is highly correlated with the vitality and quality of urban development.

Zhou said China has overemphasized the pressure on the urban environment and infrastructure brought by population size and density without realizing that high-density population is an important foundation of urban development.

He said China must discard such a misconception, promote intelligent urban governance and enhance the vitality and quality of the development through improving DID quality and scale.

“The real economic development of China has only started since the beginning of the 21st century,” Zhou said. “There are two main driving forces for China’s economic development. One is international trade after it joined the WTO and the other is urbanization.”

The report analyzes key indicators of urbanization in China from 2000 to 2016, showing that during this period, China’s GDP increased by 330 percent and the urban area expanded 180 percent, whereas the population in DID only increased 20 percent.

“It is more of the urbanization in land than urbanization in population,” Zhou said.

During this period, the energy consumption per unit of GDP fell by 40 percent, and the carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP fell by 30 percent. However, the energy consumption per capita rose sharply. For example, the electricity consumption per capita increased 330 percent, leading to an increase of 210 percent in the total amount of carbon dioxide emissions and making China the world’s largest carbon dioxide emitter.

Zhou said he believes China has an urgent need to improve the quality of economic development and urban construction.

The report also compares two major metropolitan areas of East Asia — the Beijing metropolitan area (Beijing and its suburbs) and the Tokyo metropolitan area (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba) in terms of population, GDP, carbon dioxide emissions, and PM2.5 levels.

According to the report, while the Beijing metropolitan area is 1.2 times the size of the Tokyo metropolitan area, its permanent population and DID population are only about 60 percent of the Tokyo metropolitan area.

Beijing’s GDP is only 30 percent of the Tokyo metropolitan area, and its GDP per capita is only half that of the Tokyo metropolitan area. However, Beijing’s energy consumption per unit of GDP is 7.4 times that of the Tokyo metropolitan area, and Beijing’s carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP are 4.7 times that of Tokyo’s.

As a result, despite a much smaller population and GDP, Beijing’s carbon dioxide emissions are 1.2 times that of the Tokyo metropolitan area.

“Beijing needs to implement the metropolitan area development strategies, optimize the urban DID spatial structure as well as the economic structure, improve the lifestyle, and enhance the resource utilization efficiency,” Zhou said.

Zhao Qizheng, former director of the State Council Information Office and the first director of the Pudong New Area Management Committee, spoke highly of the index and said he believes the index provides new ideas, discourses, and frameworks for understanding and governing a city.

Yang Weimin, chief expert of the index expert group, said he believes the three-dimensional view of cities reflects a well-balanced conception and provides guidance for a more comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development of cities.

“The report is not only an evaluation, but also a direction for progress,” Yang said.

 

1. Comprehensive Ranking

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The Comprehensive Ranking: Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen Respectively Winning the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Places Again

In addition, Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen each won the 1st place in the social, economic, and environmental rankings, again.

            Specifically, within the social dimension, Beijing ranked first in the country with her prevailing advantages in all the three sub-dimension indicators of quality of life, inheritance and exchange, as well as status and governance. Shanghai won the national 1st place in two sub-dimension indicators (i.e., quality of economic development and urban influence) within the economic dimension and in one sub-dimension indicator (i.e., spatial structure) within the environmental dimension. Shenzhen was ranked relatively even across the environmental, economic and social dimensions, taking the 1st, 3rd, and 7th plaes respectively. From the rankings of different indicators, however, it is also observed Beijing and Shanghai still have many problems within the environmental dimension to be solved in a timely manner.

 

2. Environmental Ranking

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Shenzhen Continued to Be the Champion in the Environmental Ranking while Sanya and Haikou Ranked 2nd and 3rd Respectively

Shenzhen’s success in the environmental ranking mainly relied on her high stardards of urbanization, convenient urban transportation, high population density and compact spatial structure. As an emerging coastal megacity, Shenzhen has achieved a relatively balanced development in environmental, social, and economic dimensions.

            From No. 2 to No. 10 in the environmental ranking respectively sat Sanya, Haikou, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Xiamen, Zhuhai, Fuzhou, Chongqing and Suzhou.

            Among the top 10 cities in the environmental dimension, Chongqing and Suzhou are located along the Yangtze River, and the other eight cities sit on the coastline. Coastal and riverside cities have not only achieved a rapid economic development in the era of big exchanges and big transactions but have enjoyed natural advantages in ecological resources. These cities, pioneering in China’s opening to the outside world, have also exceled in spatial structure and environmental quality.

 

3. Social Ranking

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Beijing Continued to Be the Champion in the Social Ranking, with Shanghai and Guangzhou Taking the 2nd and 3rd Places

As the capital of China, Beijing has unparalleled advantages in the social dimension. Shanghai ranked 2nd for each of the three sub-dimension indicators, namely, quality of life, inheritance and exchange, as well as status and governance. In addition to the 3rd place in quality of life, Guangzhou ranked 4th for other two sub-dimension indicators.

            Chongqing, Hangzhou, Tianjin, Shenzhen, Nanjing, Chengdu, and Xi’an ranked from 4th to 10th respectively within the social dimension.

            The top 10 cities within the social dimension are predominately municipalities directly under the Central Government, capital cities of provinces, and cities specifically designated in the state plan. Except for Shenzhen, which is a new city emerging as a special economic zone under the reform and opening-up policy, all other nine cities have a long history, wherein Beijing, Hangzhou, Nanjing and Xi’an were capitals of ancient empires.

 

 

4. Economic Ranking

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Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen Continued to Hold Their Places as Top 3 in the Economic Ranking

As the leader in the development of the Yangtze River Delta Megalopolis and the Yangtze River Economic Zone, Shanghai continued to be the champion in the economic ranking. Although Beijing slightly lagged behind Shanghai in terms of quality of economic development and urban influence, she ranked No. 1 in dynamic development nationwide. Shenzhen, which ranked 3rd within the economic dimension, also ranked 3rd for all the three sub-dimension indicators, namely, quality of economic development, dynamic development, and urban influence.

            Guangzhou, Tianjin, Suzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Nanjing ranked from 4th to 10th within the economic dimension, respectively.