By Kim Hyelin and Lee Jihae

The global competitiveness ranking of the nation's capital of Seoul has shot up eight notches in half a year.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on Sept. 28 that the city ranked 25th out of 111 cities surveyed in the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), up from 33rd in March this year and 11 notches higher than 36th in September last year.

New York ranked first, London second, Shanghai third and Tokyo fourth (see the graph below).

The British consulting company Z/Yen, which launched the GFCI in 2007, conducts online surveys on financial centers worldwide and evaluates them based on five categories: business environment, financial sector development, infrastructure, human capital, and reputation and general factors. The index is announced twice a year in March and September.

Seoul ranked 18th in fintech, up from 27th in March in making a quick leap considering that the capital did not even make the list in this category last year.

The city also ranked sixth in future prospects, outpacing Hong Kong (10th) and New York (15th).

The average scores of the world's major cities declined 6.25% (41 points) from March due to COVID-19, yet Seoul maintained its existing level and raised its international competitiveness.

Deputy Mayor for Economic Policy Kim Eui Seung said, "To respond to the COVID-19 crisis, we will focus our aid on non-contact and digital methods of financial innovation and create the opportunity to enhance Seoul's financial competitiveness by attracting domestic and foreign financial institutions and networking."

The chart shows each city's Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) for this year. (Screen capture from GFCI homepage)