In 2024, Seoul was ranked 17th among smart cities worldwide according to multiple indicators covering existing infrastructure, technological services, and categories under the Human Development Index (HDI). The capital city of South Korea previously rose in global smart city rankings every survey year since 2019, but fell by one place in 2024.

CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Chongqing data was reported at 99.900 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 100.600 Prev Mth=100 for Jan 2025. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Chongqing data is updated monthly, averaging 100.100 Prev Mth=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 101.600 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2020 and a record low of 97.800 Prev Mth=100 in Mar 2020. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Chongqing data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Previous Month=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Ningbo data was reported at 97.600 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 101.800 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Ningbo data is updated monthly, averaging 102.750 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 107.400 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2024 and a record low of 97.600 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Ningbo data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Miscellaneous Goods & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data was reported at 110.200 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records an increase from the previous number of 107.800 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Miscellaneous Goods & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data is updated monthly, averaging 102.500 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 110.200 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025 and a record low of 96.600 Prev Year=100 in Nov 2021. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Miscellaneous Goods & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Clothing: 36 City: Kunming data was reported at 101.200 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 101.600 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Clothing: 36 City: Kunming data is updated monthly, averaging 99.800 Prev Year=100 from Feb 2001 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 289 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 112.800 Prev Year=100 in Jul 2013 and a record low of 81.300 Prev Year=100 in Jan 2008. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Clothing: 36 City: Kunming data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Healthcare & Medical Service: 36 City: Guangzhou data was reported at 98.100 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 98.600 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Healthcare & Medical Service: 36 City: Guangzhou data is updated monthly, averaging 100.600 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 110.900 Prev Year=100 in Oct 2017 and a record low of 98.100 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Healthcare & Medical Service: 36 City: Guangzhou data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

As of September 2024, New York ranked as the world's most attractive financial center, earning a score of 763 on a comprehensive financial center rating index that considers multiple factors. London followed closely in second place with a rating of 750. What are financial centers? A financial center is a city or region that serves as a strategic hub for the financial industry, bringing together banks, trading firms, stock exchanges, and other financial institutions. These hubs are typically distinguished by strong infrastructure, a stable regulatory and political environment, favorable taxation policies, and ample opportunities for business and trade growth. According to a 2024 survey of financial services professionals, the key factors influencing a financial center's competitiveness were the business environment, human capital, and infrastructure. Financial centers by region According to the Global Financial Centers Index, the most attractive financial hubs in North America are New York, San Francisco, and Chicago. In Latin America and the Caribbean, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, and Sao Paulo received the highest scores. When financial sector professionals were asked which financial centers were likely to become more significant in the next years, they pointed to Seoul, Singapore, Dubai.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Shenyang data was reported at 99.300 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 101.400 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Shenyang data is updated monthly, averaging 101.350 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 105.500 Prev Year=100 in Apr 2017 and a record low of 98.600 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2016. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Shenyang data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

In 2024, approximately 22.81 million people lived in the São Paulo metropolitan area, making it the biggest in Latin America and the Caribbean and the fifth most populated in the world. The homonymous state of São Paulo was also the most populous federal entity in the country. The second place for the region was Mexico City with 22.51 million inhabitants.

Brazil's cities

Brazil is home to two large metropolises, only counting the population within the city limits, São Paulo had approximately 12.4 million inhabitants, and Rio de Janeiro around 6.8 million inhabitants. It also contains a number of smaller, but well known cities such as Brasília, Salvador, Belo Horizonte and many others, which report between 2 and 3 million inhabitants each. As a result, the country's population is primarily urban, with nearly 85 percent of inhabitants living in cities.

Mexico City

Mexico City's metropolitan area ranks fifth in the ranking of most populated cities in the world. Founded over the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan in 1521 after the Spanish conquest as the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, the city still stands as one of the most important in Latin America. Nevertheless, the preeminent economic, political, and cultural position of Mexico City has not prevented the metropolis from suffering the problems affecting the rest of the country, namely, inequality and violence. Only in 2021, the city registered a crime incidence of 45,336 reported cases for every 100,000 inhabitants and around 32 percent of the population lived under the poverty line.

In 2024, Colima in Mexico ranked as the world's most dangerous city with a homicide rate of 140 per 100,000 inhabitants. Seven of the 10 cities with the highest murder rates worldwide are all found in Mexico. The list does not include countries where war and conflict exist. Latin America dominate murder statistics Except for Mandela Bay, all the cities on the list are found in Latin America. Latin America also dominate the list of the world's most dangerous countries. Violence in Latin America is caused in great part by drug trafficking, weapons trafficking, and gang wars. Crime in South Africa Mandela Bay in South Africa is the only city outside Latin America among the 10 most dangerous cities worldwide. The country is struggling with extremely high levels of inequality, and is struggling with high levels of crime and power outages, harming the country's economy and driving more people into unemployment and poverty.

According to a median projection in January 2025, China's GDP was expected to grow by 4.9 percent in 2024, largely meeting the annual growth target of five percent set by the Chinese government. In the first quarter of 2020, the second-largest economy recorded the first contraction in decades due to the epidemic.  A root-to-branch shutdown of factories To curb the spread of the virus, the Chinese government imposed a lockdown in Wuhan, the epicenter, and other cities in Hubei province on January 23, 2020. A strict nationwide lockdown soon followed. Many factories remained closed in February, resulting in a plunge in manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI). The shutdown of the “world’s factory” had severely disrupted global supply chains, especially automobile production. In March 2020, very few industrial sectors reported positive production growth.  The pharmaceuticals sector recorded a production increase, which was mainly driven by the global demand for vital medical supplies. China had exported over seven billion yuan worth of face masks. Ripple effects on global tourism Apart from the manufacturing industry, the prolonged closures of business had caused significant losses in various sectors in China. The travel and tourism sector was massively affected by a drastic decline in flight ticket sales  and hotel occupancy rates. The domestic tourism market expects a loss of 20 percent in revenues for 2020. Industry experts predicted that the global travel and tourism industry could lose about 2.5 trillion U.S. dollars in that year. 

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Food, Tobacco & Liquor: 36 City: Taiyuan data was reported at 98.600 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 101.900 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Food, Tobacco & Liquor: 36 City: Taiyuan data is updated monthly, averaging 102.050 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 113.800 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2020 and a record low of 95.500 Prev Year=100 in Jan 2024. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Food, Tobacco & Liquor: 36 City: Taiyuan data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

Lagos (Nigeria) was expected to be one of the cities in the world with the highest construction cost growth in 2025. Meanwhile, the construction cost in New York City (United States) was forecast to grow by 3.5 percent that year. Paris and Zurich were the cities included in the list with the lowest forecast growth rate.

Singapore and New York were ranked as the most expensive cities worldwide with an index of 100 out of a possible 100. Three of the 11 most expensive cities were in the United States, whereas two were in Switzerland.

In February 2025, the monthly inflation rate in China ranged at -0.7 percent compared to the same month in the previous year. Inflation had peaked at 2.8 percent in September 2022, but eased thereafter. The annual average inflation rate in China ranged at 0.2 percent in 2024. China’s inflation in comparison The term inflation means the devaluation of money caused by a permanent increase of the price level for products such as consumer or investment goods. The inflation rate is most commonly measured by the Consumer Price Index. The Consumer Price Index shows the price development for private expenses based on a basket of products representing the consumption of an average consumer household. Compared to other major economies in the world, China has a moderate and stable level of inflation. The inflation in China is on average lower than in other BRIC countries, although China enjoys higher economic growth rates. Inflation rates of developed regions in the world had for a long time been lower than in China, but that picture changed fundamentally during the coronavirus pandemic with most developed countries experiencing quickly rising consumer prices. Regional inflation rates in China In China, there is a regional difference in inflation rates. As of August 2023, Anhui province experienced the highest CPI growth, while Ningxia reported the lowest. In recent years, inflation rates in rural areas have often been slightly higher than in the cities. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, inflation was mainly fueled by a surge in prices for food and micellaneous items and services in recent months. The price gain in other sectors was comparatively slight. Transport prices have decreased recently, but had grown significantly in 2021 and 2022.

CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: Clothing: 36 City: Xining data was reported at 99.700 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 100.100 Prev Mth=100 for Jan 2025. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: Clothing: 36 City: Xining data is updated monthly, averaging 100.150 Prev Mth=100 from Jan 2012 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 158 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 106.500 Prev Mth=100 in Mar 2013 and a record low of 93.200 Prev Mth=100 in Aug 2013. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: Clothing: 36 City: Xining data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Previous Month=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Lanzhou data was reported at 100.900 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 101.400 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Lanzhou data is updated monthly, averaging 100.850 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 103.800 Prev Year=100 in Aug 2023 and a record low of 98.700 Prev Year=100 in Aug 2018. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Education Culture & Entertainment: 36 City: Lanzhou data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Fuzhou data was reported at 99.900 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 100.700 Prev Mth=100 for Jan 2025. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Fuzhou data is updated monthly, averaging 100.100 Prev Mth=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 102.300 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2016 and a record low of 98.400 Prev Mth=100 in Mar 2018. CN: Consumer Price Index: MoM: 36 City: Fuzhou data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Previous Month=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): Household Facility, Article & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data was reported at 103.700 Prev Year=100 in Feb 2025. This records an increase from the previous number of 103.000 Prev Year=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Household Facility, Article & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data is updated monthly, averaging 101.400 Prev Year=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 106.500 Prev Year=100 in Sep 2018 and a record low of 97.100 Prev Year=100 in Nov 2023. Consumer Price Index (CPI): Household Facility, Article & Service: 36 City: Urumqi data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Same Month PY=100.

Consumer Price Index (CPI): MoM: 36 City: Hangzhou data was reported at 99.900 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 100.900 Prev Mth=100 for Jan 2025. Consumer Price Index (CPI): MoM: 36 City: Hangzhou data is updated monthly, averaging 100.100 Prev Mth=100 from Jan 2016 (Median) to Feb 2025, with 110 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 102.000 Prev Mth=100 in Feb 2018 and a record low of 98.500 Prev Mth=100 in Mar 2018. Consumer Price Index (CPI): MoM: 36 City: Hangzhou data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Inflation – Table CN.IA: Consumer Price Index: 36 City: Previous Month=100.