Why are the Chinese buying gold?

" The best explanation is that individuals in China are using gold as a substitute for capital flight. .. Not every Chinese citizen is in the position to export cash, so the next best tactic for the nervous is to buy gold, a refuge from plunging property prices and declining stock markets as well as an anticipated depreciation of their currency."
http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonchang/2012/01/29/why-are-the-chinese-buying-record-quantities-of-gold/

Will Argentina invade the Falklands again?

"In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, the former head of the army, General Sir Michael Jackson, says defence cuts have made it "impossible" to win the islands back after a successful invasion, in the way the British task force did in 1982. "
--http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/falklandislands/9046826/Britain-could-not-reclaim-the-Falklands-if-Argentina-invades-warns-General-Sir-Michael-Jackson.html

The ultra-rich do their part to help the economy

"As the country tightens it's belt, Britain's super rich - the 1% of the 1% - are spending like never before. Why? Because someone has to ...
The yachts, the mansions, the handbags are so much more than decadent fripperies. They plough hundreds of millions into the British economy, employing thousands. Listen to Roxburgh, the triumphant party organiser of 2011: “One very charming client said to me that she viewed entertaining as the new philanthropy. She said: ‘I know that if I spend hundreds of thousands on an event, I am not just entertaining my guests, I am paying the mortgages of everyone working there. I could keep the money in the bank, helping nobody. At least this way I know the florist is feeding his children.’ ”
--http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/recession/9025468/The-recession-deniers.html

GDP and the national debt

The GDP of the US is now $15,294 billion. The national debt is now at $15,236 billion.  So the debt hasn't yet hit 100% of GDP but it will any day now.

Update: The national debt hit $15,295 billion on 1/30/2012.  So yesterday the national debt officially hit 100% of GDP.

Top 60 Cities, Version 6

Another listing, influenced by the Knight Report. 60 seems like a better number than 50 to list all the important cities.

1. New York City (1)
2. London (7)
3. Tokyo (2)
4. Singapore (9)
5. Shanghai (3)
6. Beijing (11)
7. Paris (12)
8. Toronto (13)
9. Seoul (4)
10. Chicago (5)
11. Hong Kong (6)
12. Washington DC (16)
13. Sao Paulo (8)
14. Los Angeles (18)
15. Moscow (10)
16. San Francisco (15)
17. Mexico City (19)
18. Sydney (23)
19. Mumbai (14)
20. Zurich (20)
21. Taipei (26)
22. Buenos Aires (17)
23. Osaka (21)
24. Berlin (29)
25. Brussels (30)
26. Boston (22)
27. Frankfurt (32)
28. Guangzhou (24)
29. Istanbul (34)
30. Madrid (25)
31. Miami (36)
32. Dallas (27)
33. Houston (28)
34. Montreal (33)
35. Vancouver (35)
36. Rio de Janeiro (31)
37. Philadelphia (37)
38. Dubai (43)
39. Delhi (38)
40. Atlanta (39)
41. Melbourne (40)
42. Vienna (41)
43. Geneva (42)
44. Munich (48)
45. Kuala Lumpur (50)
46. Amsterdam (44)
47. Stockholm (45)
48. Cairo (53)
49. Bogota (55)
50. Jakarta (54)
51. Jersey (46)
52. Shenzhen (47)
53. Bangkok (57)
54. Barcelona (49)
55. Milan (60)
56. Manila (51)
57. Johannesburg (58)
58. Dublin (80)
59. Santiago (59)
60. Copenhagen (77)

Space Industry in the Isle of Man

"THE space industry is a sector that until the 21st century would not have been associated with the Isle of Man.

But things have certainly changed in a big way during the past decade.

Tim Craine, Director of the Business Development Agency for the Isle of Man Government, admits the talk of the Island being associated with space commerce would have been "science fiction" just a few years ago.

But the truth is stranger than fiction - and can be far more interesting.

Mr Craine gave a fascinating presentation to the Junior Chamber of Commerce last night at the Claremount Hotel, Douglas, about the development of the space industry.

There are numerous firms now based here and one of them - Excalibur Almaz - plans to offer trips round the moon and back for space tourists at a cost of $31m.

Recently aerospace market and consultancy analyst firm ASCEND declared the Island the fifth most likely nation to return to the moon.

Meanwhile a report by the Economic Policy Centre said the UK should follow the example of the Isle of Man and the US when it comes to its space industry.

Mr Craine outlined that it was back in 2000 when the Isle of Man Government entered into an agreement with ManSat to file for orbital slots.

And in 2003 it appointed ManSat's chairman and CEO Chris Stott as the Island's honorary respresentative to the space industry.

The following year zero corporate tax was introduced for space activities.

The Isle of Man Government has attracted firms here due to the zero per cent corporate tax, government grants, the Island's political stability, commercially friendly legislation and its state of the art telecommuncations infrastructure.

Over the years the industry has grown and last year the world's five largest satellite operators established the Space Data Association in the Isle of Man.

Between 2005 to 2013 it is estimated the exchequer will benefit £34,944,363 from the space industry while it is estimated that between 2011 to 2013 the private sector income would be £1,194,604,558.

What may surprise some is that despite a number of space commerce firms having a presence in the Island, the industry only employs the equivalent of 16 full time jobs here at the moment.

But the Island's reputation has spread - the Google Lunar X Prize team summit was held here last week with the majority of 22 registered teams from around the world visiting.

The ensuing media coverage was worth - in advertising terms - just under £250,000.

And even the world's second ever space tourist is a resident in the Isle of Man.

So it is fair to say that the Island's rise as a space super power has been truly out of this world."
--http://www.isleofman.com/news/article.aspx?article=29870

Worldwide Centers of Commerce

1. London
2. New York
3. Tokyo
4. Singapore
5. Chicago
6. Hong Kong
7. Paris
8. Frankfurt
9. Seoul
10. Amsterdam
11. Madrid
12. Sydney
13. Toronto
14. Copenhagen
15. Zurich
16. Stockholm
17. Los Angeles
18. Philadelphia
19. Osaka
20. Milan
21. Boston
22. Taipei
23. Berlin
24. Shanghai
25. Atlanta
26. Vienna
27. Munich
28. San Francisco
29. Miami
30. Brussels
31. Dublin
32. Montreal
33. Hamburg
34. Houston
35. Dallas
36. Washington DC
37. Vancouver
38. Barcelona
39. Dusseldorf
40. Geneva
41. Melbourne
42. Bangkok
43. Edinburgh
44. Dubai
45. Tel Aviv
46. Lisbon
47. Rome
48. Mumbai
49. Prague
50. Kuala Lumpur
51. Moscow
52. Budapest
53. Santiago
54. Mexico City
55. Athens
56. Sao Paulo
57. Beijing
58. Johannesburg
59. Warsaw
60. Shenzhen
61. New Delhi
62. Bogota
63. Buenos Aires
64. Istanbul
65. Rio de Janeiro
66. Bangalore
67. St. Petersburg
68. Jakarta
69. Riyadh
70. Cairo
71. Manila
72. Chengdu
73. Chongqing
74. Beirut
75. Caracas

From: http://www.mastercard.com/us/company/en/insights/pdfs/2008/MCWW_WCoC-Report_2008.pdf

Yet Another List of the Top Global Cities

1. New York
2. London
3. Paris
4. Tokyo
5. Brussels
6. Los Angeles
7. Singapore
8. Beijing
9. Toronto
10. Berlin
11. Chicago
12. Washington DC
13. Seoul
14. Frankfurt
15. Sydney
16. San Francisco
17. Hong Kong
18. Shanghai
19. Mexico City
20. Bangkok
21. Moscow
22. Zurich
23. Munich
24. Taipei
25. Sao Paulo
26. Buenos Aires
27. Istanbul
28. Milan
29. Boston
30. Miami
31. Cairo
32. Dubai
33. Kuala Lumpur
34. Tel Aviv
35. Bogota
36. Rio de Janeiro
37. New Delhi
38. Mumbai
39. Jakarta
40. Johannesburg

Source: http://www.knightfrank.com/wealthreport/2011/global-cities-survey/

Top 50 Cities, Version 5

Here is yet another list of the top cities.  I was going to do the top 200 but this is a lot of work and I lost interest.  This is based heavily on population, but each city's ranking must be within 5 of the previous list.   The number in brackets is the population of the metro area, in thousands.

Jersey is listed as 46 here.  The only reason it is listed is that it was ranked 21 on the list of top Global Financial Centres. Likewise, Geneva, here 42, was listed as 13 of the GFCs.

It is interesting to see the changes in the composition of the top 50.
List 1 to List 2:  Edinburgh, Glasgow, Copenhagen, Cairo dropped.  Melbourne, Guernsey and Isle of Man added.
List 2 to List 3:  Rome dropped, Edinburgh re-added.
List 3 to List 4: Edinburgh re-dropped, Isle of Man dropped.  Shenzhen and Munich added.
List 4 to List 5: Guernsey dropped, Kuala Lumpur added.

1. New York City (2) [19,425]
2. Tokyo (7) [36,669]
3. Shanghai (5) [16,575]
4. Seoul (8) [9,773]
5. Chicago (3) [9,204]
6. Hong Kong (1) [7,069]
7. London (6) [8,631]
8. Sao Paulo (13) [20,262]
9. Singapore (4) [4,837]
10. Moscow (12) [10,550]
11. Beijing (16) [12,385]
12. Paris (14) [10,485]
13. Toronto (9) [5,449]
14. Mumbai (19) [20,041]
15. San Francisco (10) [3,541]
16. Washington DC (11) [4,460]
17. Buenos Aires (22) [13,074]
18. Los Angeles (21) [12,762]
19. Mexico City (24) [19,460]
20. Zurich (15) [2,000]
21. Osaka-Kobe (20) [11,337]
22. Boston (17) [4,593]
23. Sydney (18) [4,429]
24. Guangzhou (26)[8,884]
25. Madrid (28) [5,851]
26. Taipei (31) [6,900]
27. Dallas (29) [4,951]
28. Houston (23) [4,605]
29. Berlin (32) [4,430]
30. Brussels (25) [1,090]
31. Rio de Janeiro (35) [11,950]
32. Frankfurt (27) [2,300]
33. Montreal (33) [3,783]
34. Istanbul (39) [10,525]
35. Vancouver (30) [2,117]
36. Miami (34) [5,750]
37. Philadelphia (42) [5,626]
38. Delhi (43) [22,157]
39. Atlanta (36) [4,691]
40. Melbourne (38) [3,853]
41. Vienna (45) [2400]
42. Geneva (37) [191]
43. Dubai (40) [2262]
44. Amsterdam (46) [2159]
45. Stockholm (44) [2100]
46. Jersey (41) [98]
47. Shenzhen (48) [9,005]
48. Munich (49) [1353]
49. Barcelona (50) [5,083]
50. Kuala Lumpur (54) [7200]
51. Manila (58) [11,628]
52. Guernsey (47)
53. Cairo (66) [11,001]
54. Jakarta (56) [9,210]
55. Bogota (67) [8,500]

Top 50 GFCs that are not in my list are: Wellington(NZ), Luxembourg, Qatar, Guernsey, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Copenhagen, Oslo, Helsinki, Isle of Man, Hamilton (Bermuda), Dublin, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and Milan.

There are replaced (not in the same order) by cities that I think are more global cities: Moscow, Mumbai, Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, Guangzhou, Dallas, Houston, Berlin, Rio de Janeiro, Istanbul, Miami, Philadelphia, Delhi, Atlanta, Barcelona.

Alpha World Cities that are not on my list are: Milan, Bangkok, Dublin,  Jakarta, Johannesburg, Lisbon, Santiago, and Warsaw.  Cities on my list that are not Alpha World Cities are: Osaka, Guangzhou, Berlin, Rio de Janeiro, Houston, Montreal, Vancouver, Geneva, Stockholm,  Jersey, Shenzhen

Top 175 Cities

This is based heavily on the skyline ratings.

1. Hong Kong (3)
2. New York City (2)
3. Chicago (7)
4. Singapore (4)
5. Shanghai (9)
6. London (1)
7. Tokyo (6)
8. Seoul (13)
9. Toronto (12)
10. San Francisco (8)
11. Washington DC (9)
12. Moscow (17)
13. São Paulo (18)
14. Paris (10)
15. Zurich (11)
16. Beijing (21)
17. Boston (14)
18. Sydney (15)
19. Mumbai (24)
20. Osaka (23)
21. Los Angeles (16)
22. Buenos Aires (25)
23. Houston (26)
24. Mexico City (19)
25. Brussels (20)
26. Guangzhou (28)
27. Frankfurt (22)
28. Madrid (27)
29. Dallas/Ft Worth (32)
30. Vancouver (35)
31. Taipei (30)
32. Berlin (29)
33. Montreal (31)
34. Miami (34)
35. Rio de Janeiro (37)
36. Atlanta (39)
37. Geneva (33)
38. Melbourne (43)
39. Istanbul (44)
40. Dubai (45)
41. Jersey (36)
42. Philadelphia (40)
43. Delhi/New Delhi (38)
44. Stockholm (41)
45. Vienna (46)
46. Amsterdam (44)
47. Guernsey (42)
48. Shenzhen (53)
49. Munich (52)
50. Barcelona (50)
51. Bangkok (65)
52. Edinburgh (49)
53. Isle of Man (48)
54. Kuala Lumpur (59)
55. Glasgow (51)
56. Jakarta (66)
57. Tianjin (72)
58. Manila (67)
59. Santiago (84)
60. Seattle (69)
61. Honolulu (86)
62. Doha/Lusail, Qatar (77)
63. Tel Aviv / Yaffo (71)
64. Denver (76)
65. Minneapolis (74)
66. Cairo (68)
67. Bogota (89)
68. Caracas (93)
69. Calgary (91)
70. Pittsburgh (90)
71. Detroit (94)
72. Johannesburg (63)
73. Brisbane (98)
74. Wellington (54)
75. Rome (55)
76. Luxembourg (56)
77. Copenhagen (57)
78. Oslo (58)
79. Helsinki (60)
80. Dublin (61)
81. Milan (62)
82. Manama, Bahrain (64)
83. St. Petersburg (107)
84. Phoenix (70)
85. San Diego/Tijuana (75)
86. Warsaw (80)
87. Prague (81)
88. Riyadh (82)
89. Auckland (83)
90. Hamburg (85)
91. Dusseldorf (87)
92. Abu Dhabi (113)
93. Kolkata (88)
94. Jeddah (95)
95. Hamilton, Bermuda (73)
96. Busan (119)
97. Lima (96)
98. Brasilia (97)
99. Brisbane (98)
100. Stuttgart (99)
101. Portland, OR (100)
102. Road Town, British Virgin Islands (78)
103. George Town, Cayman Islands (79)
104. Chongqing (122)
105. Macao (128)
106. Yokohama (129)
107. Kuwait City (127)
108. Gibraltar (101)
109. Monaco (102)
110. Lisbon (103)
111. Talinn (104)
112. Port Louis, Mauritius (105)
113. Malta (106)
114. Nassau, Bahamas (108)
115. Budapest (109)
116. Reykjavik (110)
117. Athens (111)
118. Bangalore (112)
119. Panama City (144)
120. Karachi (114)
121. Monterrey (115)
122. Charlotte, NC (116)
123. Cape Town (117)
124. Ho Chi Min City (118)
125. Chennai, India (120)
126. St. Louis, MO (121)
127. Wuhan, China (146)
128. Gold Coast City (147)
129. Curitiba, Brazil (none)
130. Las Vegas (143)
131. Nanjing, China (none)
132. Dalian, China (none)
133. Xiamen, China (none)
134. Kyiv, Ukraine (none)
135. Fortaleza, Brazil (none)
136. Incheon, South Korea (149)
137. Benidorm, Spain (none)
138. Salvador, Brazil (none)
139. Qingdao, China (none)
140. Penang Island, Malaysia (150)
141. Chengu, China (none)
142. Sharjah, UAE (none)
143. Shenyang, China (none)
144. Kaohsiung, Taiwan (none)
145. Hangzhou, China (none)
146. Campinas, Brazil (none)
147. Yekaterinburg, Russia (none)
148. Belo Horizonte, Brazil (none)
149. Ankara, Turkey (none)
150. Belneario Camboriu, Brazil (none)
151. Rotterdam (none)
152. Xian, China (none)
153. Porto Alegre, Brazil (none)
154. Harbin, China (none)
155. Rosario, Argentina (none)
156. Minsk, Belarus (none)
157. Tampa, FL (113)
158. Hyderabad, India (124)
159. Bern, Switzerland (125)
160. Lyon, France (130)
161. Ottawa (131)
162. Lagos (132)
163. Brunei (133)
164. Sacramento, CA (134)
165. Kansas City, MO (135)
166. Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa) (136)
167. Durban, South Africa (137)
168. Nairobi, Kenya (138)
169. San Antonio, TX (139)
170. Orlando, FL (140)
171. Cincinnati, OH (141)
172. Cleveland, OH (142)
173. Recife, Brazil (145)
174. Daegu, South Korea (148)
175. Perth, Australia (none)

Top 150 Cities

This is based heavily on the Global Financial Center Rankings.  Cities in the top 50 on the previous list do not change more than 5 places, and other cities do not change more than 25. Previous ranking in parenthesis.

1. London (4)
2. New York City (1)
3. Hong Kong (3)
4. Singapore (7)
5. Shanghai (9)
6. Tokyo (2)
7. Chicago (6)
8. San Francisco (10)
9. Washington DC (5)
10. Paris (8)
11. Zurich (16)
12. Toronto (17)
13. Seoul (14)
14. Boston (12)
15. Sydney (13)
16. Los Angeles (11)
17. Moscow (18)
18. Sao Paolo (19)
19. Mexico City (20)
20. Brussels (15)
21. Beijing (24)
22. Frankfurt (27)
23. Osaka (23)
24. Mumbai (21)
25. Buenos Aires (22)
26. Houston (25)
27. Madrid (26)
28. Guangzhou (28)
29. Berlin (29)
30. Taipei (35)
31. Montreal (36)
32. Dallas/Ft Worth (30)
33. Geneva (38)
34. Miami (31)
35. Vancouver (40)
36. Jersey (41)
37. Rio de Janeiro (32)
38. Delhi/New Delhi (33)
39. Atlanta (34)
40. Philadelphia (37)
41. Stockholm (46)
42. Guernsey (42)
43. Melbourne (48)
44. Istanbul (39)
45. Dubai (49)
46. Vienna (45)
47. Amsterdam (44)
48. Isle of Man (43)
49. Edinburgh (51)
50. Barcelona (47)
51. Glasgow (52)
52. Munich (57)
53. Shenzhen (60)
54. Wellington (62)
55. Rome (50)
56. Luxembourg (63)
57. Copenhagen (53)
58. Oslo (74)
59. Kuala Lumpur (58)
60. Helsinki (70)
61. Dublin (66)
62. Milan (69)
63. Johannesburg (61)
64. Manama, Bahrain (85)
65. Bangkok (65)
66. Jakarta (59)
67. Manila (55)
68. Cairo (54)
69. Seattle (56)
70. Phoenix (64)
71. Tel Aviv (67)
72. Tianjin (68)
73. Hamilton, Bermuda (91)
74. Minneapolis (72)
75. San Diego/Tijuana (73)
76. Denver (71)
77. Doha/Lusail, Qatar (101)
78. Road Town, British Virgin Islands (93)
79. George Town, Cayman Islands (94)
80. Warsaw (114)
81. Prague (116)
82. Riyadh (92)
83. Auckland (75)
84. Santiago (76)
85. Hamburg (77)
86. Honolulu (79)
87. Dusseldorf (80)
88. Kolkata (81)
89. Bogota (82)
90. Pittsburgh (83)
91. Calgary (84)
92. Tehran (86)
93. Caracas (87)
94. Detroit (88)
95. Jeddah (90)
96. Lima (95)
97. Brasilia (96)
98. Brisbane (97)
99. Stuttgart (98)
100. Portland, OR (99)
101. Gibraltar (none)
102. Monaco (none)
103. Lisbon (none)
104. Talinn (none)
105. Port Louis, Mauritius (none)
106. Malta (none)
107. St. Petersburg (121)
108. Nassau, Bahamas (none)
109. Budapest (none)
110. Reykjavik (none)
111. Athens (none)
112. Bangalore (100)
113. Abu Dhabi (102)
114. Karachi (103)
115. Monterrey (105)
116. Charlotte, NC (106)
117. Cape Town (107)
118. Ho Chi Min City (88)
119. Busan (90)
120. Chennai, India(110)
121. St. Louis, MO (92)
122. Chonqing, China (112)
123. Tampa, FL (113)
124. Hyderabad, India (115)
125. Bern, Switzerland (117)
126. Dhaka, Bangladesh (118)
127. Kuwait City (119)
128. Macao (120)
129. Yokohama (122)
130. Lyon, France (123)
131. Ottawa (124)
132. Lagos (125)
133. Brunei (none)
134. Sacramento, CA (none)
135. Kansas City, MO (none)
136. Brakin (Brazzaville-Kinshasa) (none)
137. Durban, South Africa (none)
138. Nairobi, Kenya (none)
139. San Antonio, TX (none)
140. Orlando, FL (none)
141. Cincinnati, OH (none)
142. Cleveland, OH (none)
143. Las Vegas, NV (none)
144. Panama City (none)
145. Recife, Brazil (none)
146. Wuhan (none)
147. Gold Coast City, Australia (none)
148. Daegu, South Korea (none)
149. Incheon, South Korea (none)
150. Penang Island, Malaysia (none)

The top 50 economies of the world in 2050

#1 China $25.3 tn (apparently includes Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan)
#2 United States $22.3 tn
#3 India $8.1 tn
#4 Japan $6.4 tn
#5 Germany $3.7 tn
#6 United Kingdom $3.6 tn
#7 Brazil $3.0 tn
#8 Mexico $2.8 tn
#9 France $2.8 tn
#10 Canada $2.3 tn
#11 Italy $2.2 tn
#12 Turkey $2.1 tn
#13 South Korea $2.1 tn
#14 Spain $2.0 tn
#15 Russia $1.9 tn
#16 Philippines $1.7 tn
#17 Indonesia $1.5 tn
#18 Australia $1.5 tn
#19 Argentina $1.5 tn
#20 Egypt $1.2 tn
#21 Malaysia $1.2 tn
#22 Saudi Arabia $1.1 trillion
#23 Thailand $856 bn
#24 Netherlands $798 bn
#25 Poland $786 bn
#26 Peru $735 bn
#27 Iran $732 bn
#28 Colombia $725 bn
#29 Switzerland $711 bn
#30 Pakistan $675 bn
#31 Bangladesh $673 bn
#32 Chile $592 bn
#33 Venezuela $558 bn
#34 Algeria: $538 bn
#35 South Africa $529 bn
#36 Austria $520 bn
#37 Nigeria $515 bn
#38 Sweden: $507 bn
#39 Belgium: $481 bn
#40 Ukraine: $462 bn
#41 Vietnam: $451 bn
#42 Singapore: $441 bn
#43 Greece: $424 bn
#44 Israel: $402 bn
#45 Ireland: $386 bn
#46 Romania: $377 bn
#47 United Arab Emirates: $360 bn
#48 Norway: $352 bn
#49 Czech Republic $342 billion
#50 Portugal: $336 billion

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/these-economies-will-dominate-the-world-in-2050-2012-1#

City-States are the future

"In his book The End of the Nation State, Japanese business guru Kenichi Ohmae speaks of a borderless economy. He argues that, in the future, you might have several hundred city states which will replace nation states. If you consider Hong Kong, for example, as an illustration, or Barcelona, or London, or indeed New York. These are global cities; they point outwards into the global marketplace. They do not have that much to do with the hinterland, the nation of which they are a part."
--http://www.fathom.com/course/10701014/session2.html

Moscow 2042

Top 125 Cities

Revised List. Cities in the top 50 on the previous list will not change more than 5 places. Cities in the top 100 will not change more than 25 places. Previous ranking in parenthesis.

1. New York City (1)
2. Tokyo (4)
3. Hong Kong (5)
4. London (2)
5. Washington DC (3)
6. Chicago (7)
7. Singapore (9)
8. Paris (8)
9. Shanghai (11)
10. San Francisco (12)
11. Los Angeles (6)
12. Boston (15)
13. Sydney (18) [Ranked #15 as a GFC]
14. Seoul (19)
15. Brussels (10)
16. Zurich (13) [Ranked #8 as a GFC]
17. Toronto/Mississauga (22)
18. Moscow (20)
19. Sao Paolo (14)
20.  Mexico City (16)
21. Mumbai (26)
22. Buenos Aires (17)
23. Osaka (27)
24. Beijing (21)
25. Houston (29)
26. Madrid (25)
27. Frankfurt (23) [Ranked #16 as a GFC]
28. Guangzhou (33)
29. Berlin (24)
30. Dallas/Ft Worth (31)
31. Miami (36)
32. Rio de Janeiro (35)
33. Delhi/New Delhi (28)
34. Atlanta (34)
35. Taipei (30)
36. Montreal (39)
37. Philadelphia (32) 
38. Geneva (37) [Ranked #13 as a GFC]
39. Istanbul (41)
40. Vancouver (42) [Ranked #17 as a GFC]
41. Jersey (38) [Ranked #21 as a GFC]
42. Guernsey (38) [Ranked #31 as a GFC]
43. Isle of Man (38)[Ranked #40 as a GFC]
44. Amsterdam (43)
45. Vienna (40)
46. Stockholm (44) 
47. Barcelona (45)
48. Melbourne (52) [Ranked #18 as a GFC]
49. Dubai (46) [Ranked #36 as a GFC]
50. Rome (47)
51. Edinburgh (48) [Ranked #32 as a GFC]
52. Glasgow (48) [Ranked #33 as a GFC]
53. Copenhagen (49)
54. Cairo (50)
55. Manila (51)
56. Seattle (53)
57. Munich (55)
58. Kuala Lumpur (56)
59. Jakarta (65)
60. Shenzhen (66)
61. Johannesburg (77)
62. Wellington, New Zealand (60) [Ranked #27 as a GFC]
63. Luxembourg (75) [Ranked #29 as a GFC]
64. Phoenix (58)
65. Bangkok (64)
66. Dublin (78)
67. Tel Aviv (81)
68. Tianjin (68)
69. Milan (89)
70. Helsinki (83)
71. Denver (67)
72. Minneapolis (54)
73. San Diego/Tijuana (59)
74. Oslo (82) 
75. Auckland (60)
76. Santiago (73)
77. Hamburg (none) 
78. Minneapolis (54)
79. Honolulu (none)
80. Dusseldorf (none) 
81. Kolkata, India (57)   
82. Bogota (80)
83. Pittsburgh (none) 
84. Calgary (none)
85. Manama, Bahrain (61) [Ranked #55 as a GFC]
86. Tehran, Iran (62)
87. Caracas, Venezuela (none)
88. Detroit (87)
89. Jakarta, Indonesia (65)
90. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (none)
91. Hamilton, Bermuda (70) [Ranked #41 as a GFC]
92. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (69)
93. Road Town, BVI (70) [Ranked #45 as a GFC]
94. George Town, Cayman Islands (70) [Ranked #46 as a GFC]
95. Lima, Peru (71)
96.  Brasilia, Brazil (72)
97. Brisbane, Australia (none) 
98. Stuttgart, Germany (none) 
99. Portland, OR (99)
100. Bangalore (76)
101. Doha, Qatar (93) [Ranked #30 as a GFC]
102. Abu Dhabi (98)
103. Karachi, Pakastan (79)
104. Bogota, Colombia (80)
105. Monterrey, Mexico (84)
106. Charlotte, NC (85)
107. Cape Town, South Africa (86)
108. Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam (88)
109. Busan, Korea (90)
110. Chennai, India (91)
111. St. Louis, MO (92)
112. Chonqing, China (94)
113. Tampa, FL (95)
114. Warsaw (96)
115. Hyderabad, India (97)
116. Prague (100)
117. Bern, Switzerland (none)
118. Dhaka, Bangladesh (none)
119. Kuwait City (none)
120. Macao (none)
121. St. Petersburg, Russia (none)
122. Yokohama (none)
123. Lyon, France (none)
124. Ottawa, Canada (none)
125. Lagos, Nigeria (none)

Largest Cities in Africa

These are in reverse order, with the largest at the bottom:

50 - N'Djamena, Chad
Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Monrovia, Liberia
Maiduguri, Nigeria
Fes, Morocco
Cotonou, Benin
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Tripoli, Libya
Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Benin City, Nigeria
Oran, Algeria
Brazzaville, Congo
Mogadishu, Somalia
Mbuji Mayi, DR Congo
Lubumbashi, DR Congo
Kumasi, Ghana
Kaduna, Nigeria
Conakry, Guinea
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Yaounde, Cameroon
Lusaka, Zambia
Antananarivo, Madagascar
Rabat, Moroco
Maputo, Mozambique
Bamako, Mali
Kampala, Uganda
Abuja, Nigeria
Douala, Cameroon
Harare, Zimbabwe
Tunis, Tunisia
Pretoria, South Africa
Dakar, Senegal
Luanda, Angola
Algiers, Algeria
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Ibadan, Nigeria
Kano, Nigeria
Nairobi, Kenya
Accra, Ghana
Durban, South Africa
Cape Town, South Africa
Casablanca, Morocco
Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire
Alexandria, Egypt
Khartoum, Sudan
Johannesburg, South Africa
Kinshasa, DR Congo
Lagos, Nigeria
1. Cairo, Egypt

Best Cities in America

1.  Raleigh, NC
2. Arlington, VA
3. Honolulu, HI
4. Scottsdale, AZ
5. Irvine, CA
6. Washington, DC
7. San Diego, CA
8. Virginia Beach, VA
9. San Francisco, CA
10. Anchorage, AK
11. Plano, TX
12. Austin, TX
13. Seattle, WA
14. New York City, NY
15. Albuquerque, NM
16. Boston, MA
17. Madison, WI
18. Colorado Springs, CO
19. Portland, OR
20. Charlotte, NC
21. Chesapeake, VA
22. Lincoln, NE
23. San Jose, CA
24. Pittsburgh, PA
25. Lexington, KY
26. Jacksonville, FL
27. Denver, CO
28. Nashville, TN
29. New Orleans, LA
30. Minneapolis, MN
31. Greensboro, NC
32. Atlanta, GA
33. Boise, ID
34. Omaha, NE
35. Houston, TX
36. Oklahoma City, OK
37. Durham, NC
38. Henderson (Las Vegas), NV
39. St. Paul, MN
40. San Antonio, TX
41. Gilbert (Phoenix), AZ
42. Dallas, TX
43. Kansas City, MO
44. Reno, NV
45. Chandler (Phoenix), AZ
46. Winston-Salem, NC
47. Tampa, FL
48. Oakland, CA
49. Phoenix, AZ
50. Irving, TX

Source: http://images.businessweek.com/slideshows/20110920/america-s-50-best-cities/slides/2

Global Financial Cities Index

Yet another list of the top cities:

1 London
2 United States
3 Hong Kong
4 Singapore
5 Shanghai
6 Tokyo
7 Chicago
8 Zurich
9 San Francisco
10 Toronto
11 Seoul
12 Boston
13 Geneva
14 Washington, D.C.
15 Sydney
16 Frankfurt am Main
17 Vancouver
18 Melbourne
19 Beijing
20 Montreal
21 Jersey
22 Munich
23 Taipei
24 Paris
25 Shenzhen
26 Osaka
27 Wellington
28 Stockholm
29 Luxembourg
30 Doha

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Financial_Centres_Index

Most Economically Powerful Cities

1. Tokyo
2. New York
3. London
4. Chicago
5. Paris
6. Boston
7. Hong Kong
8. Osaka
9. Washington DC
10. Seoul
11. Sydney
12. Toronto
13. Beijing
14. Madrid
15. Sao Paulo
16. Mexico City
17. Melbourne
18. Singapore
19. Montreal
20. Vancouver
21. Vienna
22. Shanghai
23. Buenos Aires
24. Stockholm
25. Dublin

Source: http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2011/09/25-most-economically-powerful-cities-world/109/#slide1

Best Places to Live

1 Vienna
2 Zurich
3 Auckland
4 Munich
5 Düsseldorf
6 Vancouver
7 Frankfurt
8 Geneva
9 Bern
9 Copenhagen
11 Sydney
12 Amsterdam
13 Wellington
14 Ottawa
15 Toronto
16 Hamburg
17 Berlin
18 Melbourne
19 Luxembourg
20 Stockholm
21 Perth
22 Brussels
23 Montreal
24 Nurnberg
25 Singapore
26 Canberra
27 Dublin
28 Stuttgart
29 Honolulu, HI
30 Adelaide
31 Paris
32 San Francisco, CA
33 Calgary
34 Oslo
35 Helsinki
36 Boston, MA
37 Brisbane
38 London
39 Lyon
40 Barcelona
41 Lisbon
42 Milan
43 Chicago, IL
44 Madrid
45 Washington, DC
46 Tokyo
47 New York City, NY
48 Seattle, WA
49 Kobe
50 Pittsburgh, PA
51 Yokohama

Site: http://www.mercer.com/press-releases/quality-of-living-report-2011

Countries with the most millionaires

1. US 4,715,000
2. Japan 1,230,000
3. China 670,000
4. United Kingdom 485,000
5. Germany 430,000
6. Italy 300,000
7. Switzerland 283,000
8. France 280,000
9. Taiwan 230,000
10. Hong Kong 205,000
11. Canada 162,000
12. Belgium 158,000
13. Netherlands 152,000
14. Spain 148,000
15. India 140,000
16. Australia 137,000
17. Brazil 127,000
18. Singapore 123,000
19. Saudi Arabia 117,000
20. South Korea 92,000

Source:  http://images.businessweek.com/ss/10/06/0615_global_millionaires/

Most Billionaires per City

These cities have the most number of billionaires:

1. New York
2. Moscow
3. London
4. Hong Kong
5. Mumbai
6. Istanbul
7. San Francisco
8. Shanghai
9. Paris
10. Beijing
11. Chicago
12. Shenzhen
13. Los Angeles
14. Houston
15. Dallas – Fort Worth
16. Tokyo
17. Guangzhou
18. Dubai
19. Singapore
20. Jeddah
21. Sao Paulo
22. Taipei
23. Amsterdam
24. Riyadh
25. Hangzhou

Source: http://www.spearswms.com/spears-world/wire/29532/wealthinsight-dubai-billionaire-capital-of-middle-east.thtml

=================
Here is another list of cities with the most billionaires:
1. Moscow
2. New York
3. London
4. Hong Kong
5. Istanbul
6. Mumbai
7. Sao Paulo
8. Taipei
9. Los Angeles
10. Beijing
11. San Francisco
12. Dallas
13. Shanghai
14. Seoul
15. Tokyo

Source: http://www.forbes.com/2011/05/17/cities-with-most-billionaires_slide.html

Three colossal museums to be built in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — A long-delayed project to build three colossal museums on an arid Persian Gulf island will be finished by 2017, officials say, realizing the designs of some of the world’s leading architects while underlining the ambitions of this city to emerge as a global capital.

The new date, which will be announced Wednesday, serves as a declaration that Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, will move ahead with one of the most remarkable art and culture projects in the world, despite protests prompted by workers’ conditions, fears of a financial bubble like the one that hit neighboring Dubai and qualms over a vision, both at home and abroad, that one architect called the artistic equivalent of “shock and awe.”

A veil of secrecy has concealed deliberations over the museums, a branch of the Guggenheim designed by Frank Gehry, an outpost of the Louvre planned by Jean Nouvel and a national museum rendered by Lord Norman Foster, all part of a $27 billion cultural and tourism project known as Saadiyat Island. The silence was so stark that not even employees of the lead government agency knew when the museums would be built.

But even if the museums move forward as promised — the planned sites are still sandy lots save for work on the concrete and steel foundations — the question that has bedeviled the most ambitious Persian Gulf emirates since oil was discovered remains: Can atomized cities with money and abundant vision will into existence their standing as world capitals? And now, can they do so at a time of deep unease in the region and local fears of losing their cultural identity?
--http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/25/world/middleeast/abu-dhabi-reaffirms-its-grand-plan-for-museums.html

World's tallest skyscraper to be built in Azerbaijan

"A local investor is hoping to build a 185-storey building in Sahil (formerly Primorsk) in the southwestern suburbs of Baku. The State Committee for Construction and Architecture has not yet received an offical application from the developer, the committee's deputy chairman, Dovlatkhan Dovlatkhanov, told Fineko.
He said that local investor Haji Ibrahim had started preliminary work on the project.
"As far as we know, the investor has already hired an architect, who has designed the initial sketch of the project which encompasses an offshore area in addition to the coastal zone and envisages the construction of artificial islands," Dovletkhanov said.

"The construction of a 185-floor building in the Baku settlement of Sahil is technically feasible. More detailed information will be provided after the fully developed project has been reviewed by specialists of the State Committee and the Ministry for Emergency Situations's evaluation committee," Dovletkhanov said.

A source in the Emergencies Ministry confirmed to Fineko that the project would be technically possible, but questioned whether it was needed at all.

Azerbaijan has experience of creating artificial land mass. Back in 1925 Lenin’s Cove, as it was then known, in Bibi Heybat was filled in.  If Haji Ibrahim's project sees the light of day, the Baku (Sahil) skyscraper will be taller than the world's tallest building - the Burj Khalifa in Dubai."
--http://www.news.az/articles/society/52073

Reserve currency tipping point hypothesis

Ok, here is another crazy thought. The only thing keeping the US dollar from collapsing right now is the fact that it is the global currency and no replacement is in sight.

But what if there is a replacement?  What if the combined currencies from my hypothetical South Pacific Confederation become the replacement?  So my hypothesis is that if the combined South Pacific currencies are used more than the US dollar, then that will be a tipping point causing abandonment of faith in the dollar, and then hyperinflation of the dollar into oblivion.

What if the South Pacific currencies (as well as the yuan) increase by 10% per year, and the US dollar decreases by 2/3 of that (with the other 1/3 decrease coming from the use of the euro, yen and pound).  When would the tipping point occur?

As a starting point, here are the daily share of traded currencies (from Wikipedia):
US dollar 84.9%
Euro 39.1%
Japanese yen 19.0%
UK pound 12.9%
Australian dollar 7.6%
Hong Kong dollar 2.4%
New Zealand dollar 1.6%
South Korean won 1.5%
Singapore dollar 1.4%

I calculate this will occur in 2027.  At that point 61% of all Forex transactions will use the Australian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore dollar, South Korean won, or Chinese yuan. The US dollar will be used in only 54% of transactions.  The euro, yen and pound combined will be used in 56% of transactions, and other currencies will be used in 30% of transactions.  (The total equals 200% because we are looking at both sides of the currency pair).

At that point the US dollar will no longer be an essential part of the world economy.  It will still be a major player, but our unlimited license to print money card will be revoked.

=====================
Update: The trend is definitely happening, but it is a lot slower than I stated above.  Better numbers are that the South Pacific currencies will increase by 3.2% per year, with the US dollar decreasing by 2/3 of that.  Using these figures, the tipping point will occur in 2051, when the US dollar will account for only 57.1% of all transactions, and the South Pacific currencies accounting for 57.5%.

See http://www.bis.org/publ/rpfxf10t.htm for data on currencies.

=============
Upon further reflection, I don't think this is a valid way of looking at things.  A basket of currencies will not be a replacement for the dollar.  For there to be a threat, there needs to be a single currency that is credible enough to be a replacement.  And I don't think the Australian dollar will ever be that currency.  It is an interesting thought experiment though.

Lira on Keiser

The Perth Mint

The Australian Dollar as a proxy currency

I think the Australian Dollar can be seen as a proxy or representative currency of all the other currencies of countries in my proposed South Pacific Confederation. Here are the other currencies and their exchange rates:

AUD/USD: 1.0474, UP from .9871 1 year ago
AUD/HKD: 8.129, UP from 7.773 1 year ago
AUD/KRW: 1186.8, UP from 1118.0 1 year ago
AUD/MYR: 3.2529, UP from 3.0471 1 year ago
AUD/NZD: 1.2989, DOWN from 1.3028 1 year ago
AUD/SGD: 1.3327, UP from 1.2701 1 year ago
AUD/TWD: 31.38, UP from 28.9 1 year ago
AUD/XPF: 96.997, UP from 86.88 1 year ago

Most Free Countries

Here is the list of the Top 20 Free Countries

1. Hong Kong
2. Singapore
3. Australia
4. New Zealand
5. Switzerland
6. Canada
7. Chile
8. Mauritius
9. Ireland
10. United States
11. Denmark
12. Bahrain
13. Luxembourg
14. United Kingdom
15. Netherlands
16. Estonia
17. Finland
18. Taiwan
19. Macau
20. Cyprus

--http://www.heritage.org/Index/ranking

Top Cities in the South Pacific

Here are the top 20 cities in my proposed South Pacific Confederation.  The ranking is somewhat arbitrary, but cities with more skyscrapers and population are ranked higher, in general.

1. Hong Kong *
2. Singapore *
3. Sydney *
4. Seoul
5. Taipei*
6. Melbourne
7. Kuala Lumpur*
8. Honolulu
9. Busan, South Korea*
10. Auckland
11. Macau
12. Gold Coast City
13. Daegu-Gyeongbuk, South Korea
14. Incheon, South Korea
15. Brisbane
16. Penang Island, Malaysia
17. Perth
18. Kaohsiung, Taiwan
19. Wellington*
20. Adelaide

* has stock exchange

The South Pacific Confederation

This is my idea for a proposed political and economic alliance in the South Pacific, called the South Pacific Confederation.  It is made up of 13 countries and territories which are all highly developed. I have "cherry-picked" the countries, excluding countries and territories which are too large (Indonesia) or too small or too poor (Philippines).

I think of this as the "Australian Empire".  It is a region that is connected with the rise of China, but is independent of it.

Countries:

• Australia
• Brunei
• French Polynesia (French territory)
• Guam (U.S. territory)
• Hawaii (U.S. state)
• Hong Kong (Chinese S.A.R.)
• Macau (Chinese S.A.R.)
• Malaysia
• New Caledonia (French territory)
• New Zealand
• Singapore
• South Korea
• Taiwan

Total Population: 143 million
Total GDP(ppp): $4.6 trillion

The political capital is Singapore.  The financial capital is Sydney, and the military capital is Honolulu.  I exclude Hong Kong because of its tenuous political situation.

The currency used is the Australian dollar (AUD).  This is because the Australian economy is the second largest of the group (behind only South Korea), and the AUD is more frequently traded than the won.

Preppers

"A former Army intelligence officer, [James] Rawles has written fiction and non-fiction books on end-of-civilization topics, including "How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It," which is also known as the preppers' Bible.
"We could see a cascade of higher interest rates, margin calls, stock market collapses, bank runs, currency revaluations, mass street protests, and riots," he told Reuters. "The worst-case end result would be a Third World War, mass inflation, currency collapses, and long term power grid failures."
A sense of "suffering and being afraid" is usually at the root of this kind of thinking, according to Cathy Gutierrez, an expert on end-times beliefs at Sweet Briar College in Virginia. Such feelings are not unnatural in a time of economic recession and concerns about a growing national debt, she said.
"With our current dependence on things from the electric grid to the Internet, things that people have absolutely no control over, there is a feeling that a collapse scenario can easily emerge, with a belief that the end is coming, and it is all out of the individual's control," she told Reuters."
--http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/21/us-usa-civilization-collapse-idUSTRE80K0LA20120121

Could the Australian dollar be a reserve currency?

The Australian dollar is the 5th or 6th most traded currency behind the US dollar, euro, yen, pound and maybe the Swiss franc.  Australia has much less debt per person ($12,470) than the countries behind the other currencies.

"The rational reaction of sovereign holders of US dollars who see the writing on the wall (that is, that the value of their US assets is likely to fall) and, furthermore, recognise that we are currently experiencing a major shift in the global centre of economic gravity away from the North Atlantic economies to Asia. ...

And since it is hard to trade the Chinese currency, one of the next best things is a proximate, lowly leveraged, and politically stable economy that has a liquid exchange rate and is highly integrated with the Middle Kingdom's fortunes. Yes, you guessed, it – the Sunburnt Country".
--http://www.switzer.com.au/the-experts/christopher-joye/is-the-aussie-dollar-becoming-a-global-reserve-currency/

"The Australian dollar is attractive to central banks because it has solid public finances, unlike the US, UK, and certain euro zone members.  Moreover, Australia is a big exporter of raw materials to several emerging market economies.  For these countries, buying the Australia dollar is grabbing a claim on Australia’s bountiful natural resources."
--http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/137346/20110422/australian-dollar-reserve-currency.htm

"in Aussie dollars, gold is worth the same today as it was two years ago"
--http://scottgrannis.blogspot.com/2011/04/central-bank-update-fed-is-behind-curve.html

"The ascent of the Australian dollar has largely been at the expense of the US dollar. America has been flooding global financial markets with US dollars, thereby reducing its value. It is part of a last ditch attempt to stimulate markets by providing easy money.

The chief currency strategist at Westpac Robert Rennie blames the US Federal Reserve for pumping so many extra US dollars into the global financial system. "The ultimate source of this liquidity really is the Fed. As the Fed increases the size of its balance sheet and pumps money into the US economy and the global financial system, one of the areas that it ends up in is in the demand for the Australian dollar," he explained.

Robert Rennie says that has put the Australian dollar front and centre on the international stage."

--http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-06-20/russian-central-bank-buys-up-aussie-dollars/2764936

"Australia owes its popularity among currency traders to 3 G's – geology, geography and government policy. Geology has given the company a wealth of natural resources that are in high demand, including oil, gold, agricultural products, diamonds, iron ore, uranium, nickel and coal. Geography has positioned the company as a choice trading partner for many fast-growing Asian economies with nearly insatiable resource demands. Government policy has led to fairly stable high interest rates, a stable government and economy, a lack of intervention in the currency markets, and a Western approach to business and the rule of law that has not always been typical in the region."

Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/forex/11/aud-fx-traders-should-know.asp

==============
Update:  The AUD/USD is the 4th most traded currency pair.

How to fix the Arc de Triomphe

Traffic around the Arc de Triomphe in Paris is insane, because of poor planning. Here is my suggestion for fixing it.

First, split the the roundabout into two parts, the outer circle and the inner circle. The inner circle would be used only by traffic from the Champs Elysees/Grand-Armee. All other traffic would have to use the outer circle.

There would be 2 intersections on either side of the Arc, and there would need to be 3 stoplights at each intersection. On green, incoming traffic from the Champs Elysees could enter, and could choose either the inner circle or outer circle. Synchronized with this, a green would allow traffic in the inner circle to exit. When these are red, the outer circle light would be green, and the outer traffic could either turn right to exit, go straight, or enter the inner circle.

Proposed Russian Lunar Base

"Russia is talking with the US and Europe on plans to create a manned research base on the moon, the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos said Thursday.

Roscosmos is discussing the possibilities for a permanent moon base with officials from NASA and the European Space Agency, the agency's chief, Vladimir Popovkin said.

"We don't want man to just step on the moon," Popovkin told Vesti FM radio station, according to the Ria Novosti news agency. "Today, we know enough about it, we know that there is water in its polar areas ... we are now discussing how to begin [the moon's] exploration with NASA and the European Space Agency."

He said the plan was either to set up a base on the moon or launch a station to orbit around it.

Russia also is planning to send two unmanned mission to the moon by 2020, Popovkin said."

Read more: http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpps/news/russia-us-moon-base-nasa-dpgonc-20110119-to-_17194074

Umka

Russia plans to build a city deep inside the arctic circle housing 5000 residents, under a vast dome.

"The Umka designs are based on the International Space Station, but it is vast by comparison - just short of one mile long and 800 yards wide.

'So far it's the only project in the world with an artificial climate and integral life support - just like on the space station. Not only is it a new word in architecture, but in human living too. We have used aero and space technologies while creating it.'

Electricity will be supplied by a floating nuclear power station."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2052862/Russia-plans-build-frozen-community-1-000-miles-North-Pole.html

Bangkok, city of modern ruins

"But many of those who failed in the crisis either can't be bothered or can't afford to restart their building projects, leaving Bangkok with more modern ruins than probably any other big city in the world, according to architectural experts.

..Engineers say many incomplete towers can't survive much longer than 10 years in Bangkok's blistering tropical heat and rain before suffering significant structural damage. The buildings won't necessarily fall down, but the cost of repairing or reinforcing their rusted-out beams becomes prohibitively high."
--http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?p=2990280

Shanghai Tower

One of the coolest things about it is the wind turbines near the top.

Modern day ghost towns

The empty city of Ordos

More empty skyscrapers

Underground Helsinki

Sewage at the Burj Khalifa

The tallest building in the world isn't connected to a sewage system.  Instead they haul the sewage away in trucks.

See: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2011/11/the-tallest-building-in-the-world-would-be-poop-without-trucks/
http://boingboing.net/2011/11/08/what-happens-when-you-flush-a-toilet-in-the-worlds-tallest-building.html

====================
The Burj Khalifa is practically empty:

"This symbol of the pre-financial crisis building boom opened practically empty, after all.  In late 2010, according to local business reports, about 825 of its 900 condos were unoccupied. ...for now at least, it is plainly no towering achievement in urban planning."
--http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/theskyline/2012/01/isthe-worlds-tallest-buildinghaving-its-king-kong-moment-two-years-afterdubais-burj-khalifa-opened-amida-blaze-of-fireworks.html

Skyline Ranking

1. Hong Kong
2. New York City
3. Chicago
4. Singapore
5. São Paulo
6. Seoul
7. Dubai
8. Shanghai
9. Bangkok
10. Tokyo
11. Guangzhou
12. Moscow
13. Toronto
14. Shenzhen
15. Chongqing
16. Kuala Lumpur
17. Beijing
18. Rio de Janeiro
19. Mumbai
20. Macao
21. Osaka
22. Jakarta
23. Buenos Aires
24. Istanbul
25. Recife
26. Miami
27. Sydney
28. Panama City
29. Melbourne
30. Wuhan
31. Vancouver
32. Houston
33. Honolulu
34. Busan
35. Gold Coast City
36. London
37. Mexico City
38. Curitiba
39. Los Angeles
40. Tianjin
41. Atlanta
42. Caracas
43. Makati (Manila)
44. Las Vegas
45. St. Petersburg
46. Nanjing
47. San Francisco
48. Dallas
49. Paris
50. Santiago

Source: http://www.emporis.com/statistics/skyline-ranking

Mecca Clock Tower

Officially named Abraj Al Bait, this is the second tallest building in the world at 1,972 feet, behind only the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is the largest building in the world by floor space at 1.5 million square meters. The clock face is 43 meters in diameter (about 141 feet).

Jeddah

Miapolis

Roundabout in Normal, Illinois

Doha, Qatar

Lusail, Qatar

Dholera, India

Elevated walkway planned for Dubai

"The glass tube-like walkway will connect the skyscraper and the adjoining Dubai Mall to the nearby metro station, as Emirates 24/7 reports. The walkway will be roughly 820 meters long, with a central pedestrian passage flanked on each side by five moving walkways (or as Emirates 24/7 awesomely calls them, “travelators”). Emaar Properties, developer of Downtown Dubai, estimates that its new walkway can handle a peak capacity of 13,500 pedestrians per hour."
--http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2012/01/plans-air-conditioned-stroll-burj-khalifa-dubai-metro/887/

Best countries for business

1. Hong Kong SAR
2. United States
3. United Kingdom
4. Singapore
5. Australia
6. Canada
7. Netherlands
8. Japan
9. Switzerland
10. Norway
11. Sweden
12. France
13. Belgium
14. Germany
15. Denmark
16. Malaysia
17. Spain
18. Korea, Rep.
19. China
20. Austria
21. Finland
22. Ireland
23. Saudi Arabia
24. Bahrain
25. United Arab Emirates
26. Israel
27. Italy
28. Kuwait
29. South Africa
30. Brazil

Source: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_FinancialDevelopmentReport_2011.pdf

Largest Cities of the World

1. Tokyo, Japan - 32,450,000
2. Seóul, South Korea - 20,550,000
3. Mexico City, Mexico - 20,450,000
4. New York City, USA - 19,750,000
5. Mumbai, India - 19,200,000
6. Jakarta, Indonesia - 18,900,000
7. Sáo Paulo, Brazil - 18,850,000
8. Delhi, India - 18,680,000
9. Õsaka/Kobe, Japan - 17,350,000
10. Shanghai, China - 16,650,000
11. Manila, Philippines - 16,300,000
12. Los Angeles, USA - 15,250,000
13. Calcutta, India - 15,100,000
14. Moscow, Russian Fed. - 15,000,000
15. Cairo, Egypt - 14,450,000
16. Lagos, Nigeria - 13,488,000
17. Buenos Aires, Argentina - 13,170,000
18. London, United Kingdom - 12,875,000
19. Beijing, China - 12,500,000
20. Karachi, Pakistan - 11,800,000
21. Dhaka, Bangladesh - 10,979,000
22. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - 10,556,000
23. Tianjin, China - 10,239,000
24. Paris, France - 9,638,000
25. Istanbul, Turkey - 9,413,000
26. Lima, Peru - 7,443,000
27. Tehrãn, Iran - 7,380,000
28. Bangkok, Thailand - 7,221,000
29. Chicago, USA - 6,945,000
30. Bogotá, Colombia - 6,834,000
31. Hyderabad, India - 6,833,000
32. Chennai, India - 6,639,000
33. Essen, Germany - 6,559,000
34. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - 6,424,519
35. Hangzhou, China - 6,389,000
36. Hong Kong, China - 6,097,000
37. Lahore, Pakistan - 6,030,000
38. Shenyang, China - 5,681,000
39. Changchun, China - 5,566,000
40. Bangalore, India - 5,544,000
41. Harbin, China - 5,475,000
42. Chengdu, China - 5,293,000
43. Santiago, Chile - 5,261,000
44. Guangzhou, China - 5,162,000
45. St. Petersburg, Russian Fed. - 5,132,000
46. Kinshasa, DRC - 5,068,000
47. Baghdãd, Iraq - 4,796,000
48. Jinan, China - 4,789,000
49. Houston, USA - 4,750,000
50. Toronto, Canada - 4,657,000
51. Yangon, Myanmar (Burma) - 4,458,000
52. Alger, Algeria - 4,447,000
53. Philadelphia, USA - 4,398,000
54. Qingdao, China - 4,376,000
55. Milano, Italy - 4,251,000
56. Pusan, South Korea - 4,239,000
57. Belo Horizonte, Brazil - 4,160,000
58. Almadabad, India - 4,154,000
59. Madrid, Spain - 4,072,000
60. San Francisco, USA - 4,051,000
61. Alexandria, Egypt - 3,995,000
62. Washington DC, USA - 3,927,000
63. Wuhan, China - 3,918,000
64. Dallas, USA - 3,912,000
65. Guadalajara, Mexico - 3,908,000
66. Chongging, China - 3,896,000
67. Medellin, Colombia - 3,831,000
68. Detroit, USA - 3,785,000
69. Handan, China - 3,763,000
70. Frankfurt, Germany - 3,700,000
71. Porto Alegre, Brazil - 3,699,000
72. Hanoi, Vietnam - 3,678,000
73. Sydney, Australia - 3,665,000
74. Santo Domingo, Dom. Rep. - 3,601,000
75. Singapore, Singapore - 3,587,000
76. Casablanca, Morocco - 3,535,000
77. Katowice, Poland - 3,488,000
78. Pune, India - 3,485,000
79. Bangdung, Indonesia - 3,420,000
80. Monterrey, Mexico - 3,416,000
81. Montréal, Canada - 3,401,000
82. Nagoya, Japan - 3,377,000
83. Nanjing, China - 3,375,000
84. Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire - 3,359,000
85. Xi'an, China - 3,352,000
86. Berlin, Germany - 3,337,000
87. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - 3,328,000
88. Recife, Brazil - 3,307,000
89. Dusseldorf, Germany - 3,251,000
90. Ankara, Turkey - 3,190,000
91. Melbourne, Australia - 3,188,000
92. Salvador, Brazil - 3,180,000
93. Dalian, China - 3,153,000
94. Caracas, Venezuela - 3,153,000
95. Adis Abeba, Ethiopia - 3,112,000
96. Athina, Greece - 3,103,000
97. Cape Town, South Africa - 3,092,000
98. Koln, Germany - 3.067,000
99. Maputo, Mozambique - 3,017,000
100. Napoli, Italy - 3,012,000


Source: http://www.worldatlas.com/citypops.htm

Global Cities Index

Another list of the top global cities.

1. New York
2. London
3. Tokyo
4. Paris
5. Hong Kong
6. Chicago
7. Los Angeles
8. Singapore
9. Sydney
10. Seoul
11. Brussels
12. San Francisco
13. Washington DC
14. Toronto
15. Beijing
16. Berlin
17. Madrid
18. Vienna
19. Boston
20. Frankfurt
21. Shanghai
22. Buenos Aires
23. Stockholm
24. Zurich
25. Moscow
26. Barcelona
27. Dubai
28. Rome
29. Amsterdam
30. Mexico City
31. Montreal
32. Geneva
33. Munich
34. Miami
35. Sao Paulo
36. Bangkok
37. Copenhagen
38. Houston
39. Taipei
40. Atlanta
41. Istanbul
42. Milan
43. Cairo
44. Dublin
45. New Delhi
46. Mumbai
47. Osaka
48. Kuala Lumpur
49. Rio de Janeiro
50. Tel Aviv
51. Manila
52. Johannesburg
53. Jakarta
54. Bogota
55. Caracas
56. Nairobi
57. Guangzhou
58. Bangalore
59. Lagos
60. Karachi
61. Ho Chi Minh City
62. Shenzhen
63. Kolkata
64. Dhaka
65. Chongqing

Source: http://www.atkearney.com/images/global/pdf/Urban_Elite-GCI_2010.pdf

Petrodollar warfare hypothesis

"Most oil sales throughout the world are denominated in US Dollars, and according to proponents of the petrodollar warfare hypothesis, because most countries rely on oil imports, they are forced to maintain large stockpiles of Dollars in order to continue imports.

This creates a consistent demand for US Dollars and upwards pressure on its value, regardless of economic conditions in the United States. This in turn allows the US government to gain revenues through seignorage and by issuing bonds at lower interest rates than they otherwise would be able to. As a result the US government can run higher budget deficits at a more sustainable level than can most other countries."
--http://newamerica-now.blogspot.com/2012/01/russian-move-against-us-called-first.html

Baluarte Bridge

The Baluarte Bridge in Mexico was inaugurated on Januar 5, 2012. It is the world's tallest at 1322 feet above the ravine below.

Epic Failure - Fontainebleau

Fontainebleau Las Vegas was a massive 3900 room casino that originally was supposed to open in October 2009.  More than $1.6 billion has already been spent on the project.

However, the developer ran out of money in 2009.  Carl Icahn purchased the project at a bankruptcy sale for only $150 million.  It will cost at least $1 billion to finish the project.

Construction was halted with only a couple of floors left to enclose the curtain wall at the top.  Birds have infiltrated the top 2 floors.  Extensive water damage has occurred.  The building will likely sit for about 10 years before it is demolished.

Epic failure!

Another Masdar Video

PRT in Amritsar, India

Source: http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/16/pod-cars-are-poised-to-transform-an-indian-citys-streetscape-and-skyline/

Most Futuristic Cities

I'm still working on this, but here is the start of the list:

1. Abu Dhabi/Masdar City
Masdar City is only 11 miles from Abu Dhabi, so it is fair to combine them. Definitely the most futuristic city on earth.
Site: http://www.masdarcity.ae/en/28/abu-dhabi-economic-vision-2030/

2. Tianjin Eco-City
This is a joint project of China and Singapore. Very cool pictures. (See also the proposed Jingwu Eco City.)
Site: http://www.tianjinecocity.gov.sg/

3. Astana, Kazakhstan
Playground of Norman Foster.
Site: http://www.astana.kz/en/

4. Dubai

5. King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) / Jazan Economic City
Two very cool projects, combined for now because it is not clear how much has actually been constructed.

6. Doha / Lusail, Qatar

7. Iskandar, Malaysia
New city to be built near Singapore

8. Dholera, India
See also Gujarat International Finance Tec (G.I.F.T..) City, and Gandhinagar.

9. Yongsan / Songdo, South Korea

10. Gold Coast City, Australia

11. Kuwait City

12. Baku, Azerbaijan

13. Brasilia / Curitaba, Brazil
Two different futuristic cities in Brazil.

14. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

15. Konza Techno City, Nairobi

To be continued...

The Shard

"Indeed, the Shard -- essentially London's first genuine skyscraper, has broken a taboo. It's the first building to alter the city's character, one that shrinks the old Roman city of London down to a picturesque stage set.

Irvine Sellar likes it that way. Sitting on the building's 15th floor, where parquet flooring and carpeting are already installed, he points out the view over London. "From here," he says, "you can look out on more than a thousand years of history." Sellar is a real estate developer and the man behind the tower that makes everything else in this city of 8 million -- the history, the architecture and, or course, the people -- appear small and insignificant. Sellar says his skyscraper will change London -- and not just for today or tomorrow, "but for centuries."

From: http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,806785,00.html

Top Emerging Cities

Abu Dhabi, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Cape Town, South Africa
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Casablanca, Morocco
Doha, Qatar
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Kuwait City, Kuwait
Kiev, Ukraine
Manama, Bahrain
Johannesburg, South Africa
Minsk, Belarus
Dakar, Senegal
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Nairobi, Kenya
Port Louis, Mauritius

Source: http://www.innovation-cities.com/innovation-cities-emerging-index-2010-mid-east-africa-city-rankings/

Most Innovative Cities

Top cities to live, work and play, due to their strong innovation economics.

1. Boston
2. Paris
3. Amsterdam
4. Vienna, Austria
5. New York
6. Frankfurt, Germany
7. San Francisco
8. Copenhagen, Denmark
9. Lyon, France
10. Hamburg, Germany
11. Berlin, Germany
12. Toronto, Canada
13. Stuttgart, Germany
14. London, United Kingdom
15. Munich, Germany
16. Milan, Italy
17. Stockholm, Sweden
18. Hong Kong
19. Melbourne, Australia
20. Tokyo
21. Rome, Italy
22. Kyoto, Japan
23. Washington DC
24. Shanghai
25. Düsseldorf, Germany
26. Barcelona, Spain
27. Seoul
28. Sydney, Australia
29. Prague, Czech Republic
30. Philadelphia
31. Singapore
32. Brussels, Belgium
33. Strasbourg, France
34. Montréal
35. Seattle
36. Nantes, France
37. Helsinki, Finland
38. Marseille, France
39. Leipzig, Germany
40. Cologne, Germany
41. Toulouse, France
42. Karlsruhe, Germany
43. Bordeaux, France
44. Austin, Texas
45. Minneapolis-St Paul
46. Oslo, Norway
47. Chicago
48. Wellington, New Zealand
49. Dresden, Germany
50. Tel Aviv, Israel

Source: http://www.innovation-cities.com/innovation-cities-top-100-index-top-cities/

What makes a city futuristic?

I love lists and I am preparing a list of cities that seem like they are from the future. What are the factors that make it so?

1. Vision. I'm looking for a website and videos that express its vision of the future. Just by being there, or looking at it, you should feel amazed and positive.
2. Not too big, not too small. Bigger is usually not better, so I am arbitrarily setting an upper limit of 5 million people (sorry Hong Kong). Also, it should have enough people to actually be a functioning city and not just a vision, so I am arbitrarily setting a lower limit of 100,000 people.
3. Skyscrapers are good. Also iconic buildings.
4. Pedestrian-friendly. Monorails or other people-moving systems are good. Cars are ok, as long as there are not massive traffic jams.
5. Green areas. Fountains are nice.
6. Planned cities are nice. Bonus for capital cities.

Abu Dhabi 2030

Global Cities

Here is yet another list of the top Global Cities. Compare my list.

1. New York
2. London
3. Paris
4. Tokyo
5. Brussels
6. Los Angeles
7. Singapore
8. Beijing
9. Toronto
10. Berlin
11. Chicago
12. Washington DC
13. Seoul
14. Frankfurt
15. Sydney
16. San Francisco
17. Hong Kong
18. Shanghai
19. Mexico City
20. Bangkok
21. Moscow
22. Zurich
23. Munich
24. Taipei
25. Sao Paulo
26. Buenos Aires
27. Istanbul
28. Milan
29. Boston
30. Miami
31. Cairo
32. Dubai
33. Kuala Lumpur
34. Tel Aviv
35. Bogota
36. Rio de Janeiro
37. New Delhi
38. Mumbai
39. Jakarta
40. Johannesburg

Source: http://www.knightfrank.com/documents/wealthreport/TheWealthReport2011.pdf

Most Livable Cities in the World

1. Zurich
2. Geneva
3. Vancouver
4. Vienna
5. Auckland
6. Dusseldorf
7. Frankfurt
8. Munich
9. Bern
10. Sydney
11. Copenhagen
12. Wellington
13. Amsterdam
14. Brussels
15. Toronto
16. Berlin
17. Melbourne
18. Luxembourg
19. Ottawa
20. Stockholm
21. Perth
22. Montreal
23. Nurnberg
24. Calgary
25. Hamburg
26. Oslo
27. Dublin
28. Honolulu
29. San Francisco
30. Adelaide
31. Helsinki
32. Brisbane
33. Paris
34. Singapore
35. Tokyo
36. Lyon
37. Boston
38. Yokohama
39. London
40. Kobe
41. Barcelona
42. Madrid
43. Osaka
44. Washington DC
45. Chicago
46. Portland
47. Lisbon
48. New York City
49. Milan
50. Seattle

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/interactive_reports/livable_cities_worldwide.html

=============
Here is another list of liveability rankings:

1. Melbourne
2. Vienna
3. Vancouver
4. Toronto
5. Calgary
6. Sydney
7. Helsinki
8. Perth
9. Adelaide
10. Auckland

--http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World%27s_Most_Livable_Cities

Cities with the Largest Economies

1. Tokyo
2. New York
3. Los Angeles
4. Chicago
5. London
6. Paris
7. Osaka/Kobe
8. Mexico City
9. Philadephia
10. Sao Paulo
11. Washington DC
12. Boston
13. Buenos Aires
14. Dallas/Fort Worth
15. Moscow
16. Hong Kong
17. Atlanta
18. San Francisco/Oakland
19. Houston
20. Miami
21. Seoul
22. Toronto
23. Detroit
24. Seattle
25. Shanghai
26. Madrid
27. Singapore
28. Sydney
29. Mumbai
30. Rio de Janeiro
31. Phoenix 
32. Minneapolis 
33. San Diego 
34. Istanbul 
35. Barcelona 
36. Melbourne 
37. Delhi 
38. Beijing 
39. Denver 
40. Manila 
41. Montreal 
42. Cairo 
43. Rome 
44. Guangzhou 
45. Baltimore 
46. Milan 
47. Tehran 
48. St Louis 
49. Tampa/St Petersburg 
50. Vienna

Source: https://www.ukmediacentre.pwc.com/imagelibrary/downloadMedia.ashx?MediaDetailsID=1562

Cities with the Most Skyscrapers

1. Hong Kong 1,221
2. New York City 563
3. Tokyo 344
4. Chicago 282
5. Dubai 231
6. Shanghai 227
7. Toronto 152
8. Singapore 125
9. Bangkok 111
10. Seoul 110
11. Guangzhou 108
12. Osaka 102
13. Sydney 101
14. Moscow 89
15. Miami 79
16. Houston 78
17. Mexico City 77
18. Shenzhen 76
19. Kuala Lumpur 76
20. Beijing 73
21. Melbourne 69
22. San Francisco 68
23. São Paulo 63
24. Chongqing 61
25. Mumbai 59
26. Honolulu 59
27. Istanbul 58
28. Panama City 58
29. Atlanta 56
30. Los Angeles 55
31. Rio de Janeiro 53
32. Las Vegas 51
33. Calgary 49
34. Philadelphia 49
35. Brisbane 49
36. Vancouver 47
37. Boston 46
38. Jakarta 45
39. Dallas 40
40. Busan, South Korea 40
41. Gold Coast City, Australia 40
42. Seattle 39
43. Kaohsiung, Taiwan 38
44. Makati (Manila), Philippines 37
45. Tianjin 37
46. Nanjing 36
47. Tel Aviv - Yaffo 36
48. London 36
49. Buenos Aires 34
50. Caracas 33
51. Denver 32
52. Kobe 31
53. Yokohama 31
54. Ankara, Turkey 30
55. Montréal 30
56. Macao 29
57. Cairo 29
58. Frankfurt am Main 28
59. San Diego 28
60. Paris 27
61. Detroit 26
62. Minneapolis 26
63. Benidorm, Spain 25
64. Pittsburgh 25
65. Doha, Qatar 24
66. Abu Dhabi 23
67. Recife, Brazil 23
68. Dalian, China 21
69. Incheon, South Korea 20
70. Courbevoie (Paris), France 20
71. Sharjah, UAE 19
72. New Orleans 19
73. Baltimore 18
74. Durban, South Africa 18
75. Mississauga (Toronto), Canada 17
76. Chiba (Tokyo), Japan 17
77. Phoenix 17
78. Rotterdam 17
79. Charlotte 16
80. Ho Chi Minh City 16
81. Jersey City 16
82. Qingdao, China 16
83. Chengdu, China 15
84. Warsaw 15
85. Puteaux (Paris), France 15
86. Miami Beach 15
87. Brussels 15
88. Nagoya, Japan 15
89. Sunny Isles Beach (Miami), US 15
90. Wuhan, China 14
91. Columbus 14
92. Edmonton 14
93. Cleveland 14
94. Cincinnati 13
95. Auckland 13
96. Madrid 13
97. Perth 12
98. Changsha, China 12
99. Kansas City 12
100. Bogotá 12 

Source: http://www.emporis.com/statistics/worlds-tallest-buildings

Jazan Economic City

Putrajaya, Malaysia

Aktau City, Kazakhstan

Eko Atlantic Lagos

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Scale model of Shanghai

Sao Paulo

Proposed World Government

The world government is split into 6 sectors, and one for the world as a whole. At each level, there are 3 different capitals: political, financial, and military. This is obviously a very US-centric view.

World Government
Political Capital: New York
Financial Capital: New York (or London)
Military Capital: Washington

Northern Sector
Political Capital: Kansas City (or San Antonio)
Financial Capital: Chicago
Military Capital: Colorado Springs

Southern Sector
Political Capital: Montevideo, Uruguay
Financial Capital: Sao Paulo
Military Capital: Miami

European Sector
Political Capital: Strasbourg, France (seat of the Council of Europe)
Financial Capital: London
Military Capital: Stuttgart, Germany

Central Sector
Political Capital: Abu Dhabi
Financial Capital: Dubai
Military Capital: Qatar (forward base of the US Central Command)

African Sector
Political Capital: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Financial Capital: Johannesburg
Military Capital: Stuttgart, Germany

Pacific Sector
Political Capital: Singapore (headquarters of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation)
Financial Capital: Hong Kong
Military Capital: Honolulu

Runner Up Cities

Any list is somewhat arbitrary.  Here are the runner up cities which could possibly stake a claim into the top 100 if they can knock out some other candidate:

United States and Canada: Austin, TX; Calgary, Alberta; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Columbus, OH; Edmonton, Alberta; Hampton Roads, VA; Honolulu, HI; Indianapolis, IN; Kansas City, MO; Las Vegas, NV; Milwaukee, WI; New Orleans, LA; Oklahoma City, OK; Orlando, FL; Ottawa, Canada; Pittsburgh, PA; Richmond, VA; Salt Lake City, UT; San Antonio, TX; San Juan, Puerto Rico

South America: Belo Horizonte, Brazil; Caracas, Venezuela;  Curitaba, Brazil; Montevideo, Uraguay; Porto Alegre, Brazil; Quito, Ecuador

Central America and Caribbean:  Guadalajara, Mexico; Guatemala City; Nassau, Bahamas; Panama City; San Jose, Costa Rica; San Salvador, El Salvador; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic;

Europe: Ankara, Turkey; Antwerp, Belgium; Athens, Greece; Belfast, UK; Belgrade, Serbia; Birmingham, UK; Bratislava, Slovakia; Bucharest, Romania; Budapest, Hungary; Cologne, Germany; Dusseldorf, Germany; Gibraltor; Gothenburg, Sweden; Kyiv, Ukraine; Leeds UK; Lisbon, Portugal; Ljubljana, Slovenia; Lyon, France; Manchester, UK; Malta; Monaco; Marseille, France; Nicosia, Cyprus;  Reykjavik, Iceland; Riga, Latvia; Rotterdam, Netherlands; Sofia, Bulgaria; St. Petersburg, Russia; Stuttgart, Germany; Talinn, Estonia; Valencia, Spain; Vilnius, Lithuania; Zagreb, Croatia

Africa: Accra, Ghana; Alexandria, Egypt; Casablanca; Durban, South Africa; Libreville, Gabon; Kinshasa, DR Congo; Lagos, Nigeria; Nairobi, Kenya; Port Luis, Mauritius; Tunis, Tunisia;

Middle East: Amman, Jordan; Beirut, Lebanon; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Kuwait; Muscat, Oman

Asia: Adelaide, Australia; Ahmedebad, India; Almaty, Kazakhstan; Brisbane, Australia; Chengdu, China; Colombo, Sri Lanka;  Daegu-Gyeongbuk, South Korea; Dhaka, Pakistan; Fukuoka, Japan; Gold Coast City, Australia; Hanoi, Vietnam; Incheon, South Korea; Islamabad, Pakistan; Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Lahore, Pakistan; Macau, China; Nagoya, Japan; Penang Island, Malaysia; Perth, Australia; Pune, India; Shenyang, China; Surat, India; Wuhan, China

==========
Here is another list, partially overlapping with this, of important cities that have not been included in the top 125:

Baku, Azerbaijan
Astana, Kazakhstan
Sacramento, CA
Kansas City, MO
Brakin (Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa,DR-Congo)
Durban, South Africa
Brunei
Nairobi, Kenya
San Antonio, Texas
Orlando, FL
Cincinnati, OH
Cleveland, OH
Las Vegas, NV
Budapest, Hungary
Panama City, Panama
Recife, Brazil
Wuhan, China
Gold Coast City, Australia
Daegu, South Korea
Incheon, South Korea
Penang Island, Malaysia
Perth, Australia
Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Adelaide, Australia
Curitiba, Brazil
Monaco

================
Partial list of cities that have not been included in top 200
Wellington, Adelaide, Putrajaya (Malaysia), Astana, Lausanne (Switzerland), Bonn, Turin
Addis Ababa, Abuja
Columbus, OH; Edmonton; Hampton Roads, VA; Indianapolis, IN; Milwaukee, WI; Oklahoma City, OK; Richmond, VA; Salt Lake City;
Kingston, Jamaica; San Juan, Puerto Rico, Quito
Katowice, Poland [pop. 2.7 million]

Top 100 Powerful Cities of the World

Here is my list of the Top 100 Cities of the World.  This is based on several criteria, sometimes competing.  In general it is ranked by GDP, with adjustments for other factors, such as political power. For instance, Washington and Brussels are ranked higher for political reasons. I think it is pretty good for a first pass and it is subject to change.

Of this number, 24 are in the United States and Canada, 3 in Central America and the Caribbean, 7 are in South America, 28 are in Europe (including Russia & Turkey), 3 are in Africa, 6 are in the Middle East and 29 are in Asia (including India & Australia).

1. New York, NY
2. London
3. Washington DC/Baltimore, MD
4. Tokyo, Japan
5. Hong Kong
6. Los Angeles/Riverside, CA
7. Chicago, IL
8. Paris, France
9. Singapore
10. Brussels, Belgium
11. Shanghai, China
12. San Francisco/San Jose, CA
13. Zurich, Switzerland
14. Sao Paulo, Brazil
15. Boston, MA
16. Mexico City, Mexico
17. Buenos Aires, Argentina
18. Sydney, Australia
19. Seoul, Korea
20. Moscow, Russia
21. Beijing, China
22. Toronto, Canada
23. Frankfurt, Germany
24. Berlin, Germany
25. Madrid, Spain
26. Mumbai, India
27. Osaka/Kobe, Japan
28. Delhi/New Delhi, India
29. Houston, TX
30. Taipei, Taiwan
31. Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
32. Philadelphia, PA
33. Guangzhou, China
34. Atlanta, GA
35. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
36. Miami, FL
37. Geneva, Switzerland
38. Jersey/Guernsey/Isle of Man
39. Montreal, Canada
40. Vienna, Austria
41. Istanbul, Turkey
42. Vancouver, Canada
43. Amsterdam, Netherlands
44. Stockholm, Sweden
45. Barcelona, Spain
46. Dubai
47. Rome, Italy
48. Edinburgh/Glasgow, UK
49. Copenhagen, Denmark
50. Cairo, Egypt
51. Manila, Philippines
52. Melbourne, Australia
53. Seattle, WA
54. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
55. Munich, Germany
56. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
57. Kolkata, India
58. Phoenix, AZ
59. San Diego/Tijuana, CA
60. Auckland/Wellington, New Zealand
61. Manama, Bahrain
62. Tehran, Iran
63. Barcelona, Spain
64. Bangkok, Thailand
65. Jakarta, Indonesia
66. Shenzhen, China
67. Denver, CO
68. Tianjin, China
69. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
70. Hamilton, Bermuda / Road Town, British Virgin Islands / George Town, Cayman Islands
71. Lima, Peru
72. Brasilia, Brazil
73. Santiago, Chile
74. Rome, Italy
75. Luxembourg
76. Bangalore, India
77. Johannesburg, South Africa
78. Dublin, Ireland
79. Karachi, Pakistan
80. Bogota, Colombia
81. Tel Aviv, Israel
82. Oslo, Norway
83. Helsinki, Finland
84. Monterrey, Mexico
85. Charlotte, NC
86. Cape Town, South Africa
87. Detroit, MI
88. Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam
89. Milan, Italy
90. Busan, Korea
91. Chennai, India
92. St Louis, MO
93. Doha, Qatar
94. Chonqing, China
95. Tampa/St Petersburg, FL
96. Warsaw, Poland
97. Hyderabad, India
98. Abu Dhabi
99. Portland, OR
100. Prague, Czech Republic

Update: Honolulu should be in the top 50 at least.

Top Business Cities

1. London
2. New York
3. Hong Kong
4. Singapore
5. Shanghai
6. Tokyo
7. Chicago
8. Zurich
9. San Francisco
10. Toronto
11. Seoul
12. Boston
13. Geneva
14. Washington DC
15. Sydney
16. Frankfurt
17. Vancouver
18. Melbourne
19. Beijing
20. Montreal
21. Jersey 
22. Munich 
23. Taipei 
24. Paris 
25. Shenzhen 
26. Osaka 
27. Wellington 
28. Stockholm 
29. Luxembourg 
30. Qatar
31. Guernsey
32. Edinburgh 
33. Glasgow 
34. Copenhagen 
35. Amsterdam 
36. Dubai 
37. Oslo 
38. Kuala Lumpur 
39. Helsinki 
40. Isle of Man 
41. Hamilton (Bermuda)
42. Vienna 
43. Dublin 
44. Brussels 
45. British Virgin Islands 
46. Cayman Islands 
47. Mexico City 
48. Madrid 
49. Sao Paulo 
50. Milan 
51. Prague 
52. Johannesburg 
53. Rio de Janeiro 
54. Rome 
55. Bahrain 
56. Warsaw 
57. Bangkok 
58. Gibraltar 
59. Monaco 
60. Lisbon 
61. Moscow 
62. Istanbul 
63. Buenos Aires 
64. Mumbai 
65. Jakarta 
66. Riyadh 
67. Talinn 
68. Mauritius 
69. Manila 
70. Malta 
71. St Petersburg 
72. Bahamas 
73. Budapest 
74. Reykjavik 
75. Athens

Source: http://zyen.com/PDF/GFCI%2010.pdf

Hedge funds moving to Malta

"Malta has also begun to win business from more-established fund jurisdictions. The island has benefited from a growing demand by investors for transparency as well as from fears among hedge funds that the EU was becoming increasingly hostile to firms based outside of it.

In 2010, nine companies from the British Virgin Islands, seven from the Cayman Islands and six from Luxembourg switched their legal domicile to Malta, according to the MFSA. In addition, at least a dozen large U.K. hedge funds and funds of hedge funds have shifted part of their operations, including accounting and investor relations, to Malta.

[Paul] Keegan says adjustment to life on Malta is easy. U.K. newspapers and British television are ubiquitous. Public telephone booths are even the same iconic red ones found in Britain. Keegan doesn’t miss London’s weather. Malta averages 300 days of sunshine per year. And he and his wife are building a house on the island, something he says they could never have afforded to do in London, where they lived in a two-bedroom apartment."

--http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-05/malta-lures-connecticut-hedge-funds-with-300-days-of-sun-aided-by-eu-rules.html

Iskandar Malaysia

US will kill the dollar

Debt jumps $97 billion overnight

On 12/29/2011 the national debt was $15,126 billion.
On 12/30/2011 the national debt was $15,223 billion. The debt held by the public went up only $12 billion, whereas intragovernmental debt went up $85 billion to a new record high of $4,775 billion.

Debt held by the public went up only $58 billion in December.

Cold War with Iran

There is a cold war going on right now with Iran. The US is blacklisting the whole country. Iran sees this as a provocation and may shut down the Straits of Hormuz. And then the US Navy will intervene to reopen it.

See: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/02/iran-currency-plunges-us-sanction
Iran test-fires long-range missile in naval drill

"The US has slapped sanctions on Iran, targeting its financial sector while the EU is considering an embargo on Iranian oil. But if the West suffocates Iran, it will have no option but to respond in a severe manner, Dr Seyed Mohammad Marandi told RT.
­“The problem is that the US is pushing this conflict, this confrontation, in a direction which is becoming dangerous,” said Marandi of the University of Tehran.
--‘Iran opposes US hegemony’

Riyadh

The title of the video says "Riyadh female University", but it appears to be a downtown area of Riyadh. Very cool and futuristic.

King Abdullah Economic City