SAR in second place behind Shanghai in China cities competitiveness ranking

Hong Kong, for the third year in a row, took second place in the China Urban Competitiveness Ranking in 2015, with Shanghai topping the list and Shenzhen taking the third spot.

However, Hong Kong was left way behind in the sub-index for future growth and was portrayed as even less promising than last year.

The report is based on annual research conducted by the China Institute of City Competitiveness (CICC), a Hong Kong-based think tank, on 358 major cities across the country.

Among 16 categories, Hong Kong topped the lists of cities with the best social security and quality of assets.

Last year, the city dropped out of the top 30 in the safest cities' list because of the illegal "Occupy Central" protests.

Shenzhen grabbed the title of the best growing city, with an overall score of 1915.92, followed by Tianjin and Chongqing logging 1881.51 and 1761.26, respectively - whereas Hong Kong ended up 15th, earning 837.25 points.

Economic growth and technological and cultural innovation were Hong Kong's weakest points, according to the report.

In 2014, Hong Kong ranked 13th in the category. The continuous descent shows the city has an urgent need to reform its industrial structure, which has remained almost unchanged since 1997, CICC Chairman Gui Qiangfang said.

According to official figures, Shenzhen has put 4 percent of its GDP into innovation and technology development, whereas Hong Kong only inputs 0.76 percent. The figure is even lower than the share of technology expenditure by African country Kenya, which took up 0.96 of its GDP.

As the city has just established its Information and Technology Bureau, Gui hoped Hong Kong could catch up in the sector and develop new sources of growth.

This year marked the CICC's 14th survey. In the first 11 years, Hong Kong dominated as the country's most competitive city.

Separately, according to a Global Financial Centres Index report released in September, Hong Kong ranked third after London and New York. Regional rival Singapore ranked No 4.

Despite its leading position in the financial sector, an expert suggests the city should develop a strategic vision. Director of Industrial Economy Research Center at Shenzhen University Wei Dazhi urged Hong Kong to join the country's development drive and fit into regional economies.

luisliu@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 12/10/2015 page8)