A report on the competitiveness of Chinese cities published by the International Institute for Urban Development on October 19 names Beijing as China's most charming city. Other cities that made the top ten include Shenzhen, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Suzhou.

Night view of the Chang'an Avenue in Beijing. [File photo]

286 regional cities were evaluated in the survey.

The report said that cities in east and south China are generally more competitive than those in the west and north.

Apart from Chengdu, in southwest China's Sichuan Province, all top thirty cities are in eastern China; the bottom thirty are all in central and western China.

The report focused on ten key elements that influence the competitiveness of cities. They are globalization, an urban post-industrial structure, a flux economy, the degree of opening up, number of entrepreneurs, an innovation-friendly environment, high quality human resources, good urban administration structure, a visible city brand, city agglomerations and city alliances.

According to the report, Beijing's attraction is not just its long history and urban landmarks, but also the quality of life of its residents and its rich public culture. The report adds that culture is playing an increasingly important role in city competitiveness.

The report predicts Beijing's creative industries would contribute more than 10 percent of its GDP by 2010. It said Beijing should emphasize "human values" to retain vitality and competitiveness.

(China.org.cn by Wu Huanshu, October 23, 2008)