London and New York’s positions as the world’s leading financial centres are being challenged by the rise of Asian cities, according to a survey.

Hong Kong and Singapore lead five Asian cities that appear in the City of London Corporation’s Global Financial Centres index of competitive cities.

The other three are the Chinese cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen.

The report also found there was “cautious optimism” in the financial industry about economic recovery. It said a key trend highlighted by the survey was “further movement of the financial business centre of gravity towards fast-developing markets – especially in Asia.”

Top 10 Financial Centres

• London
• New York
• Hong Kong
• Singapore
• Shenzhen
• Zurich
• Tokyo
• Chicago
• Geneva
• Shanghai

These markets, it said, had not been affected as badly by the financial crisis than many of the leading European and North American centres.

The report said the “speed and size of the surge” in Asian cities’ competitiveness was a “surprise”.

It also highlighted concerns among established cities of a regulatory backlash in light of the financial crisis that sparked the global economic downturn. Such a backlash, they fear, could undermine their competitiveness.

Source – BBC