The 2020-2021 report on global urban competitiveness, based on the research conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and UN-Habitat, was released online on Dec 8.

Guangzhou ranked 42nd around the world and fifth in China in terms of its global urban economic competitiveness. The city ranked 69th globally and sixth domestically in terms of its urban sustainable competitiveness. 

Urban economic competitiveness is the key foundation of a city's future development. Two major indexes were applied in evaluating cities, namely the GDP growth volume in the past five years and economic density. The evaluation system also included five indexes, including local living environment, business environment, and global connection. 

The evaluation for living environment mainly covered areas spanning history and culture, medical institutes, climate, as well as living costs. Guangzhou ranked 158th in this item globally and seventh in China.  

Urban sustainable competitiveness is essential to a city's long-term development. Its evaluation is based on indexes including the annual growth index of high income population, economic vitality, as well as scientific and technological innovation.

The evaluation of economic vitality mainly focuses on five areas, such as property rights protection, young talents proportion, and economic growth rate. Guangzhou ranked 26th in this item globally and third in China.