Shenzhen tops the comprehensive economic competitiveness ranking for all cities in China, according to the 17th edition of the China Urban Competitiveness Report.

The report was jointly issued by the Economic Division of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Economic Daily on Monday.

The report published the top-50 cities in terms of comprehensive competitiveness last year. Among the top 10 are Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Suzhou, Nanjing, Wuhan, Taipei and Dongguan, four of which are cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Ni Pengfei, chief researcher of the report as well as an assistant dean at the Strategy Institute of Finance and Economics of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, together with Cross-Strait experts in the field, took over half a year to conclude the report, according to the People’s Daily.

They researched 293 cities in China, analyzing how real estate affected their economic growth, economic structure, economic risks and people’s livelihood.

Aside from the economic competitiveness ranking, the report also includes an index of livable competitiveness, sustainable competitiveness and business-friendly competitiveness. Shenzhen ranked eighth, fourth and fourth, respectively.

Shenzhen replaced Hong Kong to become the highest-ranking city in terms of economic competitiveness in the 2015 China Urban Competitiveness Report for the first time.

This year’s report suggested that China is marching toward the key phase of modernization. China’s urbanization will continue for 15 years though the speed will slow down.