The World's Top Financial Cities: Where Wealth and Power Collide

Economic

Summary:

Explore the world’s leading financial cities, from New York to Singapore, and discover how they drive global wealth, innovation, and economic power. Learn what makes these cities the epicenters of finance and luxury.

In the global economy, financial cities are the beating hearts of wealth creation, innovation, and economic power. These urban hubs attract high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), multinational corporations, and investors, shaping the trajectory of global markets. From Wall Street’s towering skyscrapers to Singapore’s bustling financial district, these cities are more than just economic centers—they are symbols of ambition, luxury, and opportunity.

The Titans of Finance: New York and London

New York City reigns supreme as the world’s financial capital. Home to over 349,500 millionaires and 60 billionaires, NYC’s wealth is driven by Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), and a diverse economy spanning finance, media, and technology. Manhattan’s luxury real estate market, with properties averaging $2.4 million, underscores its status as a global wealth magnet.

London, Europe’s financial powerhouse, follows closely. Despite Brexit challenges, London remains a hub for international finance, with 227,000 millionaires and 35 billionaires. The City of London and Canary Wharf are home to major banks and investment firms, while neighborhoods like Mayfair and Knightsbridge boast some of the world’s most expensive real estate.

Asia’s Rising Stars: Singapore and Hong Kong

Singapore has emerged as a global wealth hub, attracting 244,800 millionaires and 30 billionaires. Known for its pro-business policies, low tax rates, and robust financial services, Singapore is a haven for HNWIs and corporations. Its luxury real estate market, particularly in Marina Bay, reflects its status as a premier financial center.

Hong Kong, despite geopolitical challenges, remains a key player in Asia’s financial landscape. With 129,500 millionaires and a thriving stock exchange, Hong Kong continues to attract investors and businesses. Its strategic location as a gateway to China further solidifies its importance.

Innovation and Technology: San Francisco and Tokyo

The San Francisco Bay Area, encompassing Silicon Valley, is a global leader in technology and innovation. Home to 305,700 millionaires and 68 billionaires, the region thrives on its tech giants like Apple, Google, and Meta. The Bay Area’s real estate market, with median home prices exceeding $1.3 million, reflects its economic dominance.

Tokyo, Asia’s largest metropolitan economy, combines tradition with modernity. With 298,300 millionaires, Tokyo’s wealth is driven by technology, manufacturing, and finance. The Tokyo Stock Exchange and neighborhoods like Minato and Shibuya highlight its economic prowess.

Emerging Contenders: Dubai and Shanghai

Dubai has rapidly ascended as a global financial hub, attracting 6,700 millionaires in 2024 alone. Its tax-friendly policies, political stability, and luxury lifestyle make it a magnet for HNWIs. Dubai’s real estate market, with properties like the Burj Khalifa, symbolizes its opulence and ambition.

Shanghai, China’s financial capital, is a rising star in the global economy. With 165,000 millionaires, Shanghai’s wealth is fueled by its stock exchange, trade, and innovation. The city’s skyline, dominated by the Shanghai Tower, reflects its rapid growth and economic influence.

The Future of Financial Cities

As technology and sustainability reshape the global economy, financial cities are adapting to maintain their dominance. Investments in fintech, green energy, and smart infrastructure are becoming key priorities. Cities like London and Singapore are leading the charge, balancing economic growth with environmental responsibility1013.

Conclusion

The world’s top financial cities are more than just economic hubs—they are centers of innovation, culture, and luxury. From New York’s Wall Street to Singapore’s Marina Bay, these cities attract the world’s wealthiest and most ambitious individuals. As they evolve, they will continue to shape the global economy, driving progress and prosperity for decades to come.

This article highlights the world’s leading financial cities, exploring their economic power, innovation, and luxury lifestyles. The AI image prompt complements the theme, visually capturing the dynamism and global influence of these urban hubs.

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ING

Economic

How Europe can rekindle its romance with investors

If you’d asked me on the eve of Donald Trump’s re-election in November where European stock markets would be right now, I, for one, wouldn’t have guessed they’d be surging. And yet, here we are. Germany’s DAX 40 is up a whopping 17% since election day.

Maybe I’m missing something; I’m just a simple economist, after all. But having spoken to a load of UK-based investors this week, there's still not a lot of love in the air when it comes to the European outlook.

Perhaps it’s the macro data, which hasn’t been as dreadful as first feared. Maybe ECB rate expectations have fallen. It could be renewed hope for 'peace' in Ukraine. It might even be the fact that US equities are now so expensive that even Europe now looks more appealing - the stronger dollar helps.

And this raises an interesting question: Are we past peak pessimism in Europe, and if not, how can we get there?

I put this question to Carsten, our Head of Macro, and it won’t surprise you that much hinges on President Trump and whether Europe can escape the worst of a US trade war. Do take a read of our team’s detailed look at the continent’s options. But to cut a long story short, Europe won’t escape tariffs, and its ability to do a quick deal is questionable.

Sure, there are quick wins. Lowering the tariff Europe charges on American-made cars is an obvious starting point. But ultimately, the US administration needs revenue, and its trade-related grievances with Europe appear deeply rooted. And it’s not at all clear that the continent’s leaders have much sway over American officials, as this week’s US-Russia talks appear to demonstrate.

The substance looks tricky, too. On LNG – a key interest of the Trump administration – Europe already sources 40% from the US. Is there really much scope to ramp that up, especially given the EU itself can’t speak on behalf of buyers?

Then there’s NATO, which is what a lot of this boils down to. Europe will more than likely commit to greater spending – perhaps upwards of 3% of GDP annually. As for where the money comes from, well, good question.

We don’t detect much appetite for pan-European borrowing right now, though Carsten reckons bolstering the European Defence Fund or using the European Investment Bank (EIB) could come back into fashion after the German elections. Either way, national governments will need to do the heavy lifting at a time when investors are already flapped about budget deficits (*cough* France).

But if Europe really is going to surprise us this year, then fiscal policy surely has to be part of the story. And let’s face it, only Germany has the room to go big. Much hinges on next week’s election outcome, but once a government is in place, Carsten reckons stimulus is coming. He points us towards Sunday’s TV debate for further clues on relaxing the infamous debt brake.

But forming a coalition is easier said than done. A negotiation involving several parties - more likely if the FDP and others meet the 5% electoral threshold – could take quite some time. You only need to look at Austria, where coalition talks are back to square one after several months, to see how challenging this process can be. No coalition means no meaningful German fiscal boost.

I’m guessing that, so far, I’ve not exactly filled you with optimism. So try this instead: how about a renaissance of the European consumer?

Wage growth is still north of 5%, where inflation is close to 2%. Yes, the ECB expects pay growth to slow considerably this year. But what if it doesn’t? After all, on some metrics at least, the European jobs market remains more buoyant than the US. Vacancies are still 30% up on pre-Covid levels in France and Germany, versus 10% in the US, according to the same set of data from the hiring agency Indeed.

The European savings ratio is also higher than average, whereas the US is below. Whether that buffer gets deployed is another question, listening to Carsten, given relatively weak consumer confidence. But if that changes, it could just be the tailwind Europe needs this year to escape the gloom.

I’m not saying that’s our base case, though. And despite what might be happening in stock markets, ‘peak pessimism’ in financial markets could still be yet to come. Our FX team expect EUR/USD to hit parity in Q2 before drifting higher thereafter. Their latest forecasts are out today. And my Rates Strategy colleagues think investors remain sensitive to the downside risks in Europe. They see a decent chance that markets could briefly price the ECB’s terminal rate as low as 1.5%, even if we don’t expect officials to take things quite as far as that in practice.

Whatever happens, if Europe's going to win back investors' hearts in the long run, good news needs to come from somewhere. Let's hope the equity folk know something we don't.

Source:ING

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Cohen

Economic

South Korea's unemployment rate dropped sharply in January, highlighting how domestic political tensions have had minimal impact on the country's jobs market.

The unemployment rate dropped to 2.9% from 3.7% in December 2024, according to Friday data from Statistics Korea.

On the other hand, employment for those aged between 15 years old and 64 years old rose 0.1 percentage points to 68.8%.

The number of employed people exceeded the number of unemployed. About 135,000 people were employed, with the number of employed rising to 27.9 million people. The number of jobless people rose only by 11,000 to around 1.1 million people in January, the Statistics Bureau reported.

Public administration and health and social recorded the most hires among all industries, adding 65,000 people and 180,000 people, respectively.

"We found today's figures positive, as they suggest that the political upheavals in December had a minimal impact on the labor market," ING's South Korea and Japan senior economist, Min Joo Kang, said. "At the same time, it shows that the Korean labor market is heavily dependent on public programs, rather than the private sector."

South Korea's political landscape was shaken, especially in the first part of the year, after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached, following the announcement of an emergency martial law.

Source:MT Newswires

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ING

Economic

The jobless rate improved mostly in government-sector jobs while import prices rose mostly due to the weak Korean won. We expect more macro policy support in the coming months.

Unemployment rate fell in January, but most job gains were in government-backed programmes

The unemployment rate fell sharply from 3.7% in December to 2.9% in January, well below the market consensus of 3.2%. In fact, as we had suspected last month, it was public jobs that caused the largest monthly swing. Among the industries, public administration and health & social work added the most jobs with 65k (vs -23k in December) and 180k (-140k in December), respectively. This was confirmed by an increase of 209k in the number of temporary workers (compared with -212k in December). The public work programme usually starts in January-March with contracts lasting less than one year. We found today's figures positive, as they suggest that the political upheavals in December had a minimal impact on the labour market.

At the same time it shows that the Korean labour market is heavily dependent on public programmes, rather than the private sector. Apart from the public work programme, manufacturing jobs recovered slightly (13k) after five months of contraction, while information and communications added jobs at a fairly solid rate (22k). However, other major industries such as construction and transport continue to shed jobs for a prolonged period.

Import prices rose steadily in January mostly due to the weak KRW

Import prices rose 6.6% year-on-year in January, moderating from a revised 6.8% in December. The KRW weakness is adding to domestic price pressures, as import prices in the contract currency fell -1.8%, the sixth consecutive monthly decline. We expect consumer prices to hover around 2% with upside inflationary pressures building. Yet, the government is likely to introduce addtional policy measures to curb inflation if it surges sharply.

Macro policy will be committed to supporting growth

We expect the Bank of Korea to resume its rate cutting at its February meeting. The weak KRW was the main concern for the BoK to pause its easing back in January. Now we see the KRW stabilising while the private sector is showing a weak recovery. On the fiscal side, the two major parties started talking about the supplementary budget. We expect the government to propose a budget of 20-30 trillion won by the end of the first quarter.

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Alex

Economic

With the Consumer price index (CPI) and producer price (PPI) data in hand, economists estimated that the core Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCE) price index rose 0.3% in January after gaining 0.2% in December, much lower than the 0.5% gain some had forecast following the CPI data.

Markets monitor prospects for a peace deal in Ukraine, which could boost the euro area's economy, while taking comfort that U.S. reciprocal tariffs were not immediately imposed.

Traders priced in 33 of Federal Reserve rate cuts from 32 late Thursday and 26 bps on Wednesday after U.S. data.

Germany's 10-year bond yield (DE10YT=RR), the euro area's benchmark, was flat at 2.42% and on track to record a 4.5 basis points (bps) weekly rise.

Money markets priced in a European Central Bank deposit facility rate at 1.94% in December (EURESTECBM7X8=ICAP) from 1.85% on Monday.

Germany's 2-year yield (DE2YT=RR), more sensitive to expectations for ECB policy rates, was unchanged at 2.09%.

Italy's 10-year yield was down one basis point (bp) at 3.49%. The yield gap between Italian and German yields (DE10IT10=RR) was at 106 bps.

Source:Reuters

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Owen Li

Economic

Banks are halting the sales of silver bars amid surging demand, driven by increasing global uncertainties brought by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats, industry officials said Friday.

Lenders also earlier suspended the sales of gold bars, which have emerged as the most popular safe-haven asset in recent months.

An official displays silver bars at the Korea Gold Exchange in central Seoul, Sept. 19. Newsis

Due to the surge in gold and silver prices and the resulting spike in demand, which has outpaced supply, the Korea Minting and Security Printing Corp. halted its supply of gold bars to banks on Wednesday.

The Korea Gold Exchange, for its part, had already suspended bank sales of 10-gram and 100-gram gold bars since October while continuing to sell 1-kilogram bars.

However, with silver bar prices also soaring, the exchange notified banks of the suspension of silver bar supply on Thursday. It also noted that the remaining stock of 1-kilogram gold bars would no longer be available.

The major banks affected by the suspension of silver bar supply are KB Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Bank, Woori Bank and NH NongHyup Bank. Hana Bank does not sell silver bars.

“As gold prices recently hit record highs, a shortage of gold bars emerged. Consequently, investors turned to silver bars as an alternative, leading to a surge in demand for silver bars,” an official at one of the major banks said.

Some lenders continued selling gold and silver bars by depleting their existing inventory or sourcing from alternative suppliers. However, sales are expected to end soon once their remaining stock is exhausted.

Gold is considered a safe-haven asset and tends to increase in value during periods of political and economic instability.

Following Trump’s election as U.S. president, demand for safe-haven assets has surged, driving prices higher. International gold futures prices have repeatedly hit record highs this year.

Source: Koreatimes

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Economic

Will the minutes confirm hawkish Fed bets?

The US dollar started the week on a strong footing after Trump announced 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imported to the US and signaled his intention for “reciprocal tariffs” on every nation that imposes duties on the US. Then, while testifying before Congress, Fed Chair Powell reiterated the message that the Fed is no rush to further lower interest rates, while on Wednesday, the US CPI data revealed that inflation was stickier-than-expected in January, allowing for some further strength.

Even though the greenback pulled back on Thursday and Friday, all these developments came on top of a strong NFP report for January and thus prompted investors to price in only 30bps worth of rate reductions this year, a more hawkish view than the Fed’s own projection of 50bps cuts. In other words, traders are fully pricing in only one quarter-point cut by December.

Week ahead – Fed Minutes, RBA and RBNZ Decisions in Focus_1

With that in mind, investors may pay extra attention to the minutes of the latest FOMC decision, due out on Wednesday. Although the aforementioned events occurred after the meeting, traders may be eager to scan the report for clues and hints on how willing policymakers were to reconsider their policy path should upside risks to inflation increase. A hawkish flavor could benefit the US dollar and send Treasury yields higher, while hurting equities due to concerns about higher borrowing costs for longer.

A set of robust flash S&P PMIs for February on Friday could add more credence to that view.

RBA to begin its easing cycle

On Tuesday, the RBA will announce its first monetary policy decision for 2025. At its last meeting for 2024, the Reserve Bank of Australia decided to leave its cash rate target unchanged at 4.35%, noting that longer-term inflation expectations have been consistent with the inflation target and that the Board is gaining confidence that inflation is moving sustainably towards their objective.

And all this was even before Trump’s inauguration and the imposition of tariffs on China, Australia’s main trading partner, as well as duties on steel and aluminum coming to the US from any nation. Steel is made by mixing carbon and iron, and iron ore is Australia’s top export. Aluminum is also one of Australia’s top 20 exporting materials.

Combined with the further slowdown in the CPI data for Q4, concerns about how tariffs could impact the Australian economy prompted investors to factor in nearly three quarter-point cuts for this year, with the first one largely expected at this gathering. Specifically, traders are assigning an 80% chance of a reduction now, and thus, a rate cut on its own is unlikely to shake the aussie much.

Week ahead – Fed Minutes, RBA and RBNZ Decisions in Focus_2

This will be the Bank’s first reduction in this cycle and thus, investors may be eager to find out how policymakers are planning to move thereafter. Anything suggesting that the RBA may embark on an easing cycle more aggressively than investors are currently expecting could weigh on the aussie, while the opposite may be true if officials maintain data dependency, without providing clear signals about their way forward.

RBNZ: To cut by 50 or 25bps?

On Wednesday, the central bank torch will be passed to the RBNZ. In contrast to the RBA, the RBNZ has already cut interest rates three times, with the latest two decisions being 50bps worth of reductions.

The prior meeting was held on November 27 and since then, GDP data revealed that New Zealand fell into deep recession in Q3, contracting 1% qoq after shrinking 1.1% in Q2. On top of that, the year-on-year CPI rate for Q4 held steady at 2.2%, very close to the midpoint of the RBNZ’s 1-3% target range, while the unemployment rate rose to 5.1% from 4.8% and the Labor Cost Index for the same quarter slowed to 2.9% y/y from 3.4%.

Week ahead – Fed Minutes, RBA and RBNZ Decisions in Focus_3

All these numbers prompted investors to scale up their rate cut bets. They are currently anticipating 110bps worth of rate cuts this year, while they are split on whether the Bank should proceed with another 50bps reduction at this gathering or slow the pace to 25bps. Ergo, another bold move and signals that there is more easing to come could hurt the kiwi, which may continue to underperform even against its Australian counterpart.

UK data to shape BoE policy expectations

In the UK, the employment report for December will be released on Tuesday, followed by the all-important CPI data for January on Wednesday. Retail sales for January and the preliminary PMIs for February are scheduled for Friday.

At the first BoE decision for the year, officials decided to cut interest rates by 25bps, as was broadly expected, revising down their growth projections and lifting up their inflation forecasts.

The direction of the revisions was also largely anticipated. What came as a surprise was the unanimous vote in favor of a rate cut, with two members preferring a 50bps reduction. What was even more striking was that the super-hawk Catherine Mann, who was the sole advocate for keeping rates steady in November, voted for a double reduction this time.

According to the UK Overnight Index Swaps (OIS), investors are now pricing in around 55bps worth of additional reductions this year, but should the CPI data echo the Bank’s concerns about sticky inflation moving forward, traders may reduce their bets, especially if, following this week’s better-than-expected GDP data for Q4, the PMIs point to further improvement in economic activity. This may allow the pound to extend its latest recovery a bit more.

Week ahead – Fed Minutes, RBA and RBNZ Decisions in Focus_4

Eurozone PMIs, Canada and Japan CPI data

Apart from the US and UK PMIs, Friday’s agenda includes Eurozone’s preliminary prints as well. Although the ECB is expected to lower interest rates by another 80bps this year, the euro has been the best performer this week, perhaps driven by the prospect of a de-escalation in the Ukraine war. A set of improving PMIs could help the common currency gain some more ground.

The Canadian dollar held strangely well against its neighboring greenback this week, despite Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum. It is worth mentioning that around 80% of aluminum imports to the US come from Canada.

Following Friday’s better-than-expected Canadian jobs report for January, traders are assigning around a 55% chance for the BoC to take the sidelines at its upcoming gathering on March 12, but this probability could well be shaken on Tuesday, when the Canadian CPI numbers are scheduled to be released. Inflation in Canada has already dropped below 2%, and another month of cooling price pressures may encourage some investors to reconsider whether the BoC should pause its rate cuts so soon. If the probability for a rate cut in March rises, then the loonie may slide somewhat. Canada’s retail sales for December will be released on Friday.

Week ahead – Fed Minutes, RBA and RBNZ Decisions in Focus_5

Japan’s Nationwide CPI numbers will be released during the Asian session on Friday and given the latest choice of market participants to bring forward expectations of when the BoJ is likely to raise interest rates again, the data may attract special attention by yen traders.