The ranking of the top 50 cities in the country has changed again, but Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen remain firmly in the top three. These cities have become the cities that benefit the most from artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles. GDP data for the first three quarters of 2025 reveal a new pattern of urban economics: Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen lead high-tech industries, Guangzhou stabilizes and rebounds, and Ningbo and Qingdao challenge traditional strong cities.
Wenzhou, Xuzhou, and Dalian are rushing into the trillion-dollar club, while non-provincial capital cities in the central and western regions, Luoyang, Xiangyang, and Yichang, are making a strong comeback with emerging industries. The essence of urban competition is a contest of industrial upgrading.
Specifically, Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen lead the way, mainly due to the support of high-tech industries. The three places are all centers of artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles, and are the main beneficiaries of the new round of technological revolution.
Among the TOP20 cities, Ningbo is catching up with Tianjin and Qingdao is approaching; Changsha’s quarterly GDP is catching up with Wuxi, and provincial capitals such as Hefei and Fuzhou have the highest growth rates.
In addition, Zhengzhou, Changsha, and Hefei have benefited from the new energy automobile industry, Jinan's electronics industry has exploded, and Fuzhou's pharmaceutical, chemical and other industries have grown rapidly.
In fact, it can be seen from the ranking that if you want to enter the top 20, your GDP must be at least one trillion.