Singapore is currently the most competitive city in the world, beating out New York and London, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, which focuses on global research. However, says the EIU, by 2025, New York City will be No. 1.

In order for a city to be globally competitive, it must have a large and growing economy, a good legal system, an inviting and productive culture, good infrastructure and it must have good policy on things that determine long-term stability and success, like the environment. The EIU's latest report attempts to identify those cities that, as of 2012, best embody each of those characteristics, and based on projections, where they will at the quarter-century mark. Based on the EIU's report, "HotSpots 2025: Benchmarking the Future Competitiveness of Cities," these are the most competitive cities of the future.

Eight of the 10 most competitive cities in 2012 are expected to remain in the top 10 through 2025, with Chicago and Stockholm joining the list in 2025 and Zurich and Frankfurt dropping off the list. "These are cities that, in effect, had a big head start," Leo Abruzzese, global forecasting director with the EIU, said. He pointed to the fact that many of these cities have spent decades, even centuries, building robust infrastructure and have become, in essence, financial capitals of the world.

However, there was much greater change among cities outside of the top 10. Much of the competitiveness growth in the next 13 years is expected to take place in Asian cities, such as Doha, Qatar; Incheon, South Korea; and Mumbai, India. Meanwhile, cities such as Madrid and Rome are expected to fall significantly from 2012 to 2025, mostly due to a weakened European economy, according to Abruzzese.

The cities that top this list, not surprising, are among the wealthiest. "Usually, the cities that come near the top tend to be fairly advanced economies, so they tend to be economically strong," Abruzzese said. Five of the top 10 most competitive cities in both 2012 and 2025 are in the top 10 for gross domestic product.

Source
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2013/06/30/most-competitive-cities-future/2455975/

Read more:
http://www.slideshare.net/chelogaard/bp-holdings-madrid-economy-news-update-20518040
http://online.wsj.com/community/groups/bp-holdings-barcelona-1717/topics/global-bp-holdings