Indian cities: opportunity in chaos?
Shopping centre, Gurgaon. Photo: Bloomberg
Some 31 per cent of India’s 1.2bn people live in towns and cities according to India’s 2011 census, up from 28 per cent in the 2001 census.
Now the process of urbanisation is speeding up and it is tier 2 and tier 3 cities that are leading the way, argue Sheela Rathi and colleagues at Morgan Stanley in a report published this week.
It’s a theme that will affect businesses, investors and policymakers alike. Continue reading »
Climate change greater threat to EM financial centres than to storm-hit New York
If you thought ‘superstorm’ Sandy was bad, here’s a sobering thought: New York isn’t even a high-risk city when it comes to climate change. For that, head to Asia.
According to a report by Maplecroft, the risk consultancy, several big Asian financial and manufacturing centres are in the danger zone. Continue reading »
As beyondbrics has reported before, the expansion of emerging market cities is a big deal. Urban dwellers tend to be richer than their rural counterparts, they spend more, and they are easier for companies to reach.
But when it comes to Africa and the growth story, we tend to think in terms of countries. Handily, the Economist Intelligence Unit has got past that, and identified the key 25 cities that you need to know about. Continue reading »
India: emerging cities
India’s established metropolises are saturated with investment activity. Now, tier-two and tier-three cities are emerging as investment destinations and a new report from Cushman and Wakefield explains how much money is going into what – and where. Continue reading »
IBM to invest in Kenya research lab
Kenya’s ambitions to become Africa’s information-technology hub have received a boost from the US technology giant IBM, which is establishing a research laboratory in Nairobi’s Catholic University of Eastern Africa.
The project announced on Monday is a joint venture, with the Kenyan government’s ICT Board and IBM each contributing $10m of funding over the next five years. While the Kenyan government will cover overheads and local research staff, IBM will provide technology, senior scientists and access to intellectual property for the project which will come into operation in September. Continue reading »
India’s decade: the highest housing price rise in the world
Rats. Raw sewage in the streets. Garbage to go. These are but of a few of the quality-of-life issues that continue to afflict many parts of major Indian cities like Mumbai.
And yet, few Mumbaikars – or Delhi-ites – would be surprised to learn that India has seen the biggest rise in housing prices of any country in the world in the ten years from 2001 to 2011, according to a study released by Lloyds TSB International this week. They need only look at their rent check, or downpayment. Continue reading »
The great migration: less New York more New Delhi
Everyone is moving to the city – and, especially, emerging market cities. According to a report by Credit Suisse this week, by 2037 half of the world’s population will live in one emerging market city or another.
So where should investors look to first if they want to capitalize on this trend? Apparently the smart money should head to China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. A motley bunch indeed but the logic is compelling. Continue reading »
Everyone is talking up Africa’s potential for growth – but in a continent with more than a billion people, where should foreign companies focus their attention?
According to research by Frontier Strategy Group, Africa will have 73 cities of 1-5m people by 2025. Matthew Spivack, head of MENA research, picks out five top urban markets across the continent – and five up-and-coming prospects. Some are very well-known; others may surprise you.
Continue reading »
Russia: not as unequal as you think
Beyondbrics loves nothing more than a bit of myth-busting. So a research note on Tuesday by Renaissance Capital debunking the notion that Russia is a society of rich playboy oligarchs surrounded by poor workers certainly caught the eye.
Russia, in fact, is only marginally more unequal than China and India, and far better placed than Brazil. Continue reading »
Chart of the week: the 1m-plus cities
This month will see the world’s population reach seven billion – a chance to think about the many implications and to examine which countries have benefited from the so-called demographic dividend.
But beyondbrics is going to look at a slightly different angle: cities. Specifically, cities with over a million inhabitants. Continue reading »
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