Qingdao, a coastal city of east China's Shandong province, has joined the club of China's new first-tier cities due to its commercial charm. [Xinhua]

Qingdao, a coastal city of east China's Shandong province, has joined the club of China's new first-tier cities due to its commercial charm, according to a report by the China Business Network (CBN) Co Ltd.

A total of 15 cities have joined the club. They are Chengdu, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Tianjin, Nanjing, Chongqing, Xi'an, Changsha, Qingdao, Shenyang, Dalian, Xiamen, Suzhou, Ningbo, and Wuxi.

The ranking, released by CBNweekly magazine recently, assesses commercial attraction of 338 cities in China based on five indicators: concentration of commercial resources, transportation condition, citizen vitality, variety of lifestyle, and flexibility in the future.

The list also includes four first-tier cities - Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, 30 second-tier cities, 70 third-tier cities, 90 fourth-tier cities and 129 fifth-tier cities.