Report: Global Metro Economies Reveal 'An Uncertain Recovery'

An interactive feature and report by Brookings compares growth patterns in the world's 300 largest metro economies by measuring annualized growth rate of real GDP per capita and annualized growth rate of employment, according to a post by Brookings announcing the new resource. The current report is the fourth edition of the Global MetroMonitor.

According to a Brookings Institution press release announcing the study [pdf], "Macau, China was the world’s top-performing metro area in 2014, followed by the Turkish cities of Izmir, Istanbul and Bursa. But alongside many emerging markets, four U.S. metro areas (Austin, Houston, Raleigh and Fresno) and two U.K. metro areas (London and Manchester) ranked among the 60 fastest growing metro economies worldwide."

The 2014 Global Metro Monitor Map, as it's called, allows interactive access to data and findings. The post sums up four key findings, including the following:

• "Metro areas continue to power national economic growth; most registered faster GDP per capita or employment growth in 2014 than their respective countries."
• "Sustained growth means that a majority of the world’s metro economies (60 percent) have recovered to pre-recession levels of employment and GDP per capita."

The Associated Press also provided analysis of the report—focusing on the dominance of Chinese cities relative to cities in the United States and the United Kingdom.