Climate change is having an impact on Brisbane’s status among global cities ranked in the latest Global Cities Index.
Placed 27th in the world and fourth in Australia, Brisbane was marked down due to a high frequency of natural disasters and “larger rainfall anomalies”.
The report also flagged high housing costs as a city weakness, leading to Brisbane’s lowest scores being in the Quality of Life category.
High life expectancy, strong institutions and a large foreign-born population were deemed as positives for the river city.
“Brisbane’s economy benefits from high rates of GDP and employment growth, in part thanks to the city’s involvement in the mining industry, for which it houses several company headquarters and operational offices.” the report stated.
“However, this reliance also means that Brisbane’s economic growth tends to fluctuate with the global commodities markets.”
The report said Brisbane’s economic dynamism meant it was a desirable location for immigration and attracted talent, from the rest of Australia and abroad.
“Brisbane ranks well in terms of population growth and only just falls short of the top 100 cities for that metric.
“Another one of Brisbane’s strengths is its well-educated and young workforce. It boasts one of the youngest populations out of Australia’s major cities,” the report found.
Melbourne (9), Sydney (16) and Perth (23) ranked higher than Brisbane, with Canberra (44) the only other Australian city to make the top 50.
Top 10 global cities:
- New York.
- London.
- San Jose.
- Tokyo.
- Paris.
- Seattle.
- Los Angeles.
- San Fransciso.
- Melbourne.
- Zurich
