London is Europe's best city to invest in and Manchester moves into the top 30 on the
by Harry Wise For This Is Money- Los Angeles has come top of the table, just ahead of London and Hong Kong
- Manchester had the second highest 'Environmental Impact Score'
- It is the first time the index has used the new environmental impact measure
- Australia had four cities in the top 30: Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney
- Poor air and water quality in Beijing and Shanghai saw them to drop down
Los Angeles has retained its crown as the best city in the world to invest in for the fourth year in a row, according to the Schroders Global Cities index.
London kept second place globally and first in Europe in the annual chart, which measures the attractiveness of major cities around the world for real asset investing.
Manchester is the only other UK city in the top 30, with one of the strongest environmental scores of any world city.
North America has the highest number of cities in the rankings, with eighteen cities in the top 30, and seven in the top 10, including Boston, Seattle and San Francisco, which moved up ten places compared to last year.
Tom Walker, co-head of Global Cities at investment firm Schroders, says that despite Brexit uncertainty, London has a multitude of factors that make it a very popular destination for investment.
'We weren't surprised to see London maintain its second spot in the index. Whilst there has been uncertainty generated by Brexit and the resulting political environment, the underlying fundamentals remain attractive to investors.'
'With an economy that continues to attract multi-national companies and highly skilled talent, a high quantity of green spaces, clean and reliable water, energy and public transport, London has retained its popularity with investors.'
The index assesses a city's attractiveness for real asset investing by three measures; its Economic Impact Score (EcIS), University Impact Score (UIS), and Environmental Impact Score (EIS).
Median household income, quality of educational institutions, gross domestic product and population size are among factors taken into consideration.
It is the first time the index have used the EIS scale, which evaluates cities based on their exposure to geophysical risks such as landslides, the strength of their environmental policies, and level of well-being, which is measured by factors such as access to clean energy and water.
Schroders says that despite the City of Angels holding the number one spot, its overall score declined slightly due to its 'mediocre' EIS score.
Manchester had the second highest EIS score by contrast due to its low level of physical and policy risks and high level of wellbeing, with London one place behind its northern counterpart.
The new standard resulted in two of China's biggest cities, Beijing and Shanghai, dropping down the rankings by more than ten places each due to their poor air and water quality.
Walker is optimistic that cities like Beijing and Shanghai can take the tough actions necessary in order to guarantee a more sustainable future.
He said: 'Cities with poor EIS are the ones which require the strongest policy response in order to safeguard their futures. There are many examples of cities with a poor EIS score that are at the vanguard of sustainable urban policies.
'We expect to see many of these cities improve their EIS score over the coming years, in particular the Chinese cities. Whilst China's greenhouse gas emissions are approximately 27 per cent of the world's total, they are lower on a per capita basis than the US.'
'We believe the transition to renewable energy from coal and the increasing utilisation of electric vehicles are two examples where emissions from Chinese cities will decrease at a fast pace.'
There were four Asian and European cities each on the list. Australia also had four cities in the top 30: Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney despite only having a population of 26 million.
The full list is here:
| City | Country | Continent | 2019 Score | 2019 Rank | 2020 Score | 2020 Rank | Rank Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | United States | North America | 8.6 | 1 | 8.2 | 1 | 0 |
| London | United Kingdom | Europe | 8.4 | 2 | 8.2 | 2 | 0 |
| Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Asia | 8.4 | 3 | 8.1 | 3 | 0 |
| Boston | United States | North America | 8.3 | 5 | 8.1 | 4 | 1 |
| Seattle | United States | North America | 7.9 | 15 | 8 | 5 | 10 |
| San Francisco | United States | North America | 8 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 3 |
| Sydney | Australia | Oceania | 8 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 4 |
| Chicago | United States | North America | 8.2 | 6 | 8 | 8 | -2 |
| New York | United States | North America | 8.3 | 4 | 8 | 9 | -5 |
| San Jose | United States | North America | 8 | 13 | 7.9 | 10 | 3 |
| Houston | United States | North America | 8 | 10 | 7.8 | 11 | -1 |
| Melbourne | Australia | Oceania | 7.9 | 14 | 7.7 | 12 | 2 |
| Singapore | Singapore | Asia | 8 | 12 | 7.7 | 13 | -1 |
| Paris | France | Europe | 7.8 | 17 | 7.6 | 14 | 3 |
| Atlanta | United States | North America | 7.8 | 16 | 7.6 | 15 | 1 |
| Toronto | Canada | North America | 7.7 | 19 | 7.6 | 16 | 3 |
| Washington | United States | North America | 7.7 | 18 | 7.6 | 17 | 1 |
| Austin | United States | North America | 7.4 | 25 | 7.6 | 18 | 7 |
| Beijing | China | Asia | 8.1 | 8 | 7.6 | 19 | -11 |
| Shanghai | China | Asia | 8.1 | 7 | 7.5 | 20 | -13 |
| Brisbane | Australia | Oceania | 7.4 | 30 | 7.5 | 21 | 9 |
| Dallas | United States | North America | 7.6 | 20 | 7.5 | 22 | -2 |
| Perth | Australia | Oceania | 7.2 | 36 | 7.5 | 23 | 13 |
| San Diego | United States | North America | 7.6 | 21 | 7.4 | 24 | -3 |
| Baltimore | United States | North America | 7.5 | 22 | 7.4 | 25 | -3 |
| Minneapolis | United States | North America | 7.3 | 31 | 7.4 | 26 | 5 |
| Manchester | United Kingdom | Europe | 7.2 | 40 | 7.4 | 27 | 13 |
| Philadelphia | United States | North America | 7.4 | 26 | 7.4 | 28 | -2 |
| Stockholm | Sweden | Europe | 7.1 | 46 | 7.3 | 29 | 17 |
| Miami | United States | North America | 7.5 | 24 | 7.3 | 30 | -6 |
TOP DIY INVESTING PLATFORMS
Low cost portfolios
Low cost portfolios
Cheap funds fee
£1.50 fund dealing
Investment ideas
Free fund dealing
First deal free
Annual 0.45 per cent account charge
Free investing
No fees
Free investing
Regular investing with no fees
Flat fees
Great service
Fixed monthly cost
Dealing from £7.50
Model portfolios
Model portfolios
Free fund dealing
Tools and fund ideas
> Compare the best investing platform for you