Which cities are best managing the post-COVID economy?

• “OECD Metropolitan areas” database, dimensions:
  • Indicator: “GDP_PC: GDP per capita (US$)”, expressed in US$, constant prices and constant PPPs, OECD base year (2010).
• As most values in this database are 2016 or 2015 estimates, data from the metropolitan areas was extrapolated to 2018 using GDP growth rates in OECD Regional Economy database. Dimensions: Indicator “GDP”, Measurement: “PC_REAL_PPP: USD per head, constant prices, constant PPP, base year 2010”

Formula Five-year compound annual growth rate:

(GDP per capita ₂₀₁₈/GDP per capita₂₀₁₃)^(1/5)

• Combined score of the following indicators:
• Youth Employment rate (15-24 years)
• Number of startups
• Number of startups per 1 million inhabitants

• Latest available data was collected primarily on a metropolitan level (e. g. Île-de-France instead of Paris 75). When data on a metropolitan level was unavailable, regional data was taken to represent the city (e.g. Flanders instead of Ghent, Belgium).
• In order to ensure comparability between slightly different approaches of collecting unemployment data in each country, we used the harmonised OECD Metropolitan database unemployment rate of 2018 as a base. We added the year-over-year change for the corresponding month. If that particular number was not available, we estimated it by taking into account the global average as well as the previous rates.
• Country-based estimates of the unemployment rate from the “World Economic Outlook Report” by the International Monetary Fund (IMF, released in April 2020) concerning 2020 and 2021.

• The reasoning behind this score is the following: The best outcome for an economy would be a low number of COVID-19 measures, a low number of COVID-19 deaths and a positive outlook on GDP and unemployment numbers.
• The data was collected on a country level.
• It consists of the following indicators:
  1. Number of COVID-19 measures related to the economy for the corresponding month. The introduction of measures as well as the phase-out of measures was taken into account. The score for these measures was inverted so that a high score means a low number of measures:
     • Limit public gatherings
     • Border closure
     • Border closure
     • Schools closure
     • Limit product imports/exports
     • Border checks
     • International flights suspension
     • Domestic travel restrictions
     • Partial lockdown
     • Checkpoints within the country
     • Public services closure
     • Full lockdown
     • Visa restrictions
     • limit public gatherings
     • Complete border closure
     • Curfews.

     The number of measures refers to the latest available ACAPS dataset. For the United States, we added state based information on lockdown from local authorities.

  2. Total Number of accumulated COVID-19 related deaths for the corresponding month.
     All numbers related to COVID-19 are correct as of the latest update date.
  3. IMF Outlook on unemployment in 2020 relative to 2019. As the score reflects the projected change in unemployment from 2019 to 2020, countries that enjoyed low unemployment in 2019 may therefore score lower than countries that already struggled with high unemployment, assuming both countries arrive at the same unemployment rate in 2020.
  4. IMF Outlook on unemployment in 2021 relative to 2010. As the score reflects the projected change in unemployment from 2020 to 2021, countries that enjoyed low unemployment in 2020 may therefore score lower than countries that already struggled with high unemployment, assuming both countries arrive at the same unemployment rate in 2021.
  5. IMF Outlook on GDP per capita in 2020 relative to 2019. As the score reflects the projected change in GDP growth from 2019 to 2020, countries that enjoyed high GDP growth in 2019 may therefore score lower than countries that already struggled with low GDP growth rates, assuming both countries arrive at the same GDP growth rate in 2020.

• It consists of the following indicators:
  • World Justice Project “Rule of Law Index – 2020 Insights”: “Fundamental labor rights are effectively guaranteed”.
  • Oxfam “The best and worst states to work in in America 2018”: “Worker Protection”, “Right to Organize”. This is a ranking which only includes the US; it was taken into account to differentiate between the cities in the US.
  • International Trade Union Confederation “2019 The World’s Worst Countries for Workers”: Rating (5=”No guarantee of rights due to the breakdown of the law”, 1=”Sporadic violations of rights”).
  • The data is provided mainly on a country level; except for the Oxfam ranking which is on (US) state level.

• OECD “Family database”, dimensions:
  • Indicator: “Length of paid maternal and parental”, unit: “weeks”
  • Indicator: “Length of paid father-specific leave”, unit: “weeks”
  • Age group “Total”
  • Unit: “Weeks”
• These two indicators were summed up and multiplied by 7 to obtain the total number of paid days granted for parents.
• The data is provided on a country level and reflects the situation in 2016.

• While the index is compiled by the World Bank, it is in turn an aggregate of multiple secondary indices, including the Economist Intelligence Unit Riskwire & Democracy Index, the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report, Satisfaction with transportation according to the Gallup World Poll, the Institutional Profiles Database, the Political Risk Services International Country Risk Guide, and Global Insight Business Conditions and Risk Indicators. It reflects the situation in 2018.

• OECD “Database on Migrants in OECD Regions”, dimensions:
  • Indicator: “ALL_T_SH: Share of Foreign-Born Population”
  • Place of birth: “Foreign-born”.
• All observations from this database are for the year 2015
• Indicators from Nomadslist:
  • English speaking: In order not to privilege English speaking countries in general, countries were only penalized, if they had a lower rating than “okay”.
  • Friendly to foreigners.
  • Racial tolerance.

• OECD “Final Consumption and financing” database, dimensions:
  • TRANSACT – Transaction: “P31CP060 – Health”;
  • Measure: “Current prices, millions”,
• Data was converted to PPP per capita.
• Disposable income is described in detail below. The data reflects the situation in 2018.

For Cost of Living, we used the following indicators:

• Cost of living rank
• A single person monthly costs without rent
• Four-person family monthly costs without rent
• Rent Per Month (Average of 1 bedroom, 3 bedrooms, in city centre and outside city centre)
• Buy Apartment Price (Average of 1 bedroom, 3 bedrooms, in city centre, and outside city centre).

• Restaurants (average cost of basic lunchtime menu, combo meal in fast food restaurant, basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub, dinner for two at an Italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert)
• Markets (average cost of chicken breast, milk, eggs, tomatoes, local cheese, apples, potatoes, domestic beer, red table wine, coca-cola, bread, for two people for one day)
• Rent (average cost of monthly rent for big and small furnished apartments in expensive and normal areas, plus utilities for one month)
• Transportation (average cost of gasoline, monthly ticket public and taxi trip on a business day)

• Cost

• OECD dimensions:
  • SNA Classification: “Last SNA classification (SNA 2008 or latest available)”
  • Indicator: “INCOME_DISP: Disposable Household Income”
  • Measure: “National currency per head, current prices”,
• Data was converted to PPP.

While the index is compiled by the World Bank, it is in turn an aggregate of multiple secondary indices, including the Economist Intelligence Unit Riskwire & Democracy Index, the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report, Satisfaction with transportation according to the Gallup World Poll, the Institutional Profiles Database, the Political Risk Services International Country Risk Guide, and Global Insight Business Conditions and Risk Indicators.

• Female-to-male ratio (f/m) of indicator “Estimated earned income (PPP, US$)”.

• Discrimination in the family: Child marriage, Household responsibilities, Divorce, Inheritance.
• Restricted physical integrity: Violence against women, Female genital mutilation, Missing women, Reproductive autonomy.
• Restricted access to productive and financial resources: secure access to land and non/land assets, Secure access to formal financial services, Workplace rights.
• Restricted civil liberties: Citizenship rights, Political voice, Freedom of movement, Access to justice.

Indicator “Advancement of women to leadership roles”. It refers to the results of the World Economic Forum “Executive Opinion Survey 2018-2019”, more precisely the question: “In your country, to what extent do companies provide women the same opportunities as men to rise to positions of leadership? (1 = not at all, women have no opportunities to rise to positions of leadership; 7 = extensive, women have equal opportunities of leadership)”.

• The data from the following question was utilised to support the statement: ”on average 50% of respondents had either lost their job entirely, or had their earning capacity reduced in some manner since the start of the pandemic.”
• “How has your employment status been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic? Check any that apply”:
• My employment situation has not changed at all; I own a small business, which is still open for business; I own a small business, which has been temporarily closed; I owned a small business, which I have had to close permanently; I have entirely lost at least one of my main sources of income; I have entirely lost a source of side-income; I am working reduced hours, receiving NO financial support to compensate for lost income; I am working reduced hours, WITH government or insurance support making up for some of my lost hours; I have been asked by my employer to not work at all, temporarily; but receiving NO financial support to compensate for lost income; I have been asked by my employer to not work at all, temporarily; and WITH government or insurance support making up for some of my lost hours; I am working more now than before the pandemic, but NOT being compensated for the additional hours; I am working more now than before the pandemic, and being COMPENSATED for the additional hours.
• If you would like to receive more details about the poll, kindly get in touch with info@magmaticresearch.com.