Capital slides down global financial table

Edinburgh's prestige as a global financial centre has been dealt a blow after it slipped seven places in a report on competitiveness.

Edinburgh was ranked 27th in the latest Global Financial Centers Index, seeing it fall behind the Isle of Man, Dublin and the Cayman Islands - a far cry from its position in March this year when the capital was ranked alongside Paris and Washington DC.

London remained in the top spot, closely followed by New York.

The report comes only weeks after Edinburgh was ranked the UK's most desirable city to live in. Glasgow's status also fell drastically in the report, falling 18 places to 49, leaving it behind the Bahamas and Vienna.

A spokesperson for City of London corporation said: "This research demonstrates three trends: cautious optimism that the global financial services industry is showing signs of recovery, further movement of the financial business centre of gravity towards fast-developing markets – especially in Asia; and the emergence of a 'Premier League' of economically and socially interconnected cities."

The study, which is sponsored by the City of London, sees areas of financial importance ranked in terms of people and skills, business environment, property factors with other infrastructure, market access and general competitiveness.

The fastest risers in the latest report were from the east, with five Asian cities breaking into the top ten spots. Shanghai rose 25 places to the number ten spot, whilst Shenzen—widely acknowledged as one of the worlds fastest growing financial centres—made its first appearance in the report ranked 5th. They were joined by Hong Kong, 3rd, and Singapore, 4th, in the top ten.