October 22, 2003—London remains Europe’s best city for business but its residents have suffered a dramatic fall in their quality of life.
These findings are among a number contained in European Cities Monitor 2003, an annual survey produced by Cushman & Wakefield Healey & Baker (C&WH&B), based on interviews with senior executives of 501 of Europe’s top companies looking at issues they consider important when deciding where to locate.
Although London retains its place as Europe’s best city for business, with the best qualified staff, best access to markets and best external transport links, 20% of those interviewed said that traffic control measures, such as congestion charging, would ultimately make them move outside of the zone whilst a further 7% said they would leave the city altogether.
In terms of quality of life, London has slipped from seventh place in the rankings of 30 cities to a lowly 16. Quality of life in London is now deemed to be the same as in Manchester and worse than in Dublin, Lyon, Rome, Munich and Copenhagen, among others. Barcelona, Paris and Geneva top the rankings at one, two and three respectively.
“The cities toward the top of the ranking must not rest on their laurels,” comments David Hutchings, Head of European Research at C&W/H&B. “The vibrant Spanish cities of Madrid and Barcelona have crept up the league tables over the years to pose serious competition as business locations. It is no coincidence that these two cities are perceived to have done more than any other European city to promote their image and to improve what they have to offer to companies looking to locate there.”
The senior executives questioned also regard the eastward enlargement of the European Union as the most likely factor to impact companies in Europe over the next ten years.
Europe’s best cities for doing business:
| 2003 | 2002 | City |
|---|---|---|
| Ranking | Ranking | |
| 1 | 1 | London |
| 2 | 2 | Paris |
| 3 | 3 | Frankfurt |
| 4 | 4 | Brussels |
| 5 | 5 | Amsterdam |
| 6 | 6 | Barcelona |
| 7 | 7 | Madrid |
| 8 | 9 | Berlin |
| 9 | 8 | Milan |
| 10 | 11 | Munich |
| 11 | 10 | Zurich |
| 12 | 12 | Dublin |
| 13 | 19 | Manchester |
| 14 | 15 | Geneva |
| 15 | 17 | Lisbon | 16 | 13 | Dusseldorf |
| 17 | 16 | Prague |
| 18 | 14 | Stockholm |
| 19 | 20 | Lyon |
| 20 | 18 | Hamburg |
| 21 | 21 | Glasgow |
| 22 | 26 | Warsaw |
| 23 | 25 | Budapest |
| 24 | 23 | Vienna |
| 25 | 24 | Copenhagen |
| 26 | 22 | Rome |
| 27 | 29 | Oslo |
| 28 | 30 | Moscow |
| 29 | 27 | Helsinki |
| 30 | 28 | Athens |
The overall city ranking is compiled from the individual city scorings on 12 different location-oriented factors.
For more information, contact Cushman & Wakefield.
