22 April 2011
The greater Miami area ranks as one of the top 10 American cities of the future, according to the latest ranking from fDi magazine which focuses on foreign direct investment and business expansion.
Miami earned the No. 9 spot overall among North and South American cities for business prospects in 2011-2012.
By category, it also ranked second for business friendliness, third for foreign direct investment promotion strategy and 10th for best infrastructure among major cities, the magazine said in its April issue.
Overall, New York City ranked No. 1 on the list. Rounding out the top 10 in order were Chicago, Houston, Toronto, Atlanta, Montreal, Boston, Austin, Miami and San Jose in California, the magazine said.
Among Latin American cities, Santiago in Chile, Lima in Peru and Monterrey in Mexico were tops, according to the ranking available for free at www.fdiintelligence.com.
Miami-Dade County’s economic development group, The Beacon Council, cheered the area’s ranking.
“This ranking recognizes that our foreign direct investment strategy is effective and professional,” Council President Frank Nero said in a statement
The magazine cites Miami's success in attracting foreign direct investment in 2010, with the number of inbound projects up 26 percent from 2009. Florida as a whole posted its best year for foreign direct investment since the magazine’s records began in 2003, the Council added.
fDi magazine is published by The Financial Times Ltd. since 2001 and focuses on globalization. For its Cities of the Future ranking, the magazine looked at data on 405 cities across North and South America. It examined seven categories: economic potential, human resources, cost effectiveness, quality of life, infrastructure, business friendliness and foreign direct investment promotion strategy.
For the Beacon Council statement on the ranking, visit www.beaconcouncil.com.