Hyderabad to outperform Shanghai, Bangkok and Beijing in 2023

Hyderabad, along with Bengaluru, is likely to continue to outperform Asia Pacific and Indian peers in terms of growth in 2023, with the information and communication sector as the main driver.

Hyderabad: Telangana’s happening capital city of Hyderabad is poised to outperform other major global cities including Shanghai, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh and even Beijing in terms of economic growth this year.

The latest Regional Outlook report of Oxford Economics, an economic advisory firm that aids in decision-making with data-driven economic and business insights said Hyderabad, along with Bengaluru, was likely to continue to outperform these Asia Pacific cities, and other Indian cities as well in 2023, with the information and communication sector as the main driver.

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The large information and communication sector will help weather the global downturn in goods trade, the report said, at the same time, adding that 2023 could be a difficult year for cities in the Asia Pacific region. However, there were some bright spots. Notably, it expects cities that are less exposed to weak global trade and those with strength in fast-growing sectors to show some resilience. It listed out 25 cities in the Asia Pacific region, among which Hyderabad is placed a close second to Bengaluru.

The report said the GDP growth in Hyderabad was likely to be around 6.5 percent, a tad bit lower than Bengaluru’s, which could be about 6.75 percent. Shanghai’s GDP was likely to grow around 5.5 percent, while Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City would see growth of around 4.5 percent. The growth of Beijing, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta could be lower than 4 percent, while that of Taipei was likely to be about 1.5 percent. Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney could record growths below 1 percent or even lower. The average growth of 33 cities was below 3 percent, the report said.

The Oxford Economics advisory further said Chinese cities would probably benefit from easing of Covid-19 related restrictions in 2023. It said Ho Chi Minh City’s growth would slow significantly in 2023 but would remain among the fastest growing cities in the region, in part due to global supply chain diversification. Also, Bangkok would be one of the few cities in APAC to have its economic growth accelerate in 2023. The return of tourists was a key driver of this forecast.

In China, Shanghai and Beijing would probably benefit from a 2023 less marked by Covid-19-related restrictions, it said, adding that recent announcements seemed to point in that direction, though the road to normality was still long.

Although consumer-oriented sectors such as retail trading and hospitality are expected to do better than industry, the pace at which consumer confidence improves would be tentative, the report added.