London is ranked top business city….
LONDON has beaten Paris and Frankfurt to retain its position as the best business city in Europe, according to the 20th annual European Cities Monitor report from property agents Cushman & Wakefield.
It is the twentieth year in a row that London has been named as Europe’s best city for business. It also ranked the number one city in half of the 12 major rankings, including access to markets, availability of qualified staff and international and internal transport links.
But the survey found that London scores poorly on the cost of staff, the cost of office space and levels of pollution.
James Young of Cushman & Wakefield said: “Since the collapse of Lehman Brothers just over a year ago, London has been through a pretty turbulent time. This year’s survey, however, is evidence that it has not lost its position as Europe’s and probably the world’s leading business and financial centre.”
Although prime office space remains relatively more expensive than other European cities, costs have fallen to historically low levels in the downturn.
And while London’s transport links might not yet rival those in Paris and Madrid, the report points out that as the host for the 2012 Olympic Games it will benefit from one of the largest domestic investments in infrastructure the UK has ever seen.
Head of business and space research at Cushman & Wakefield Elaine Rossall said: “While corporates have undoubtedly been reining in their operations in the current climate, the impact of being in the right location can make a huge difference to their success.”