This month we’re shining a spotlight on the Asia-Pacific region, where Traveltrust have a presence in both the north and south hemispheres, with offices in Hong Kong and Sydney. As a region experiencing significant growth we wanted to identify high growth cities and understand how their rapid economic growth has increased business travel demands across the top Australasian and Asian cities.
Naturally Indian and Chinese cities dominate when it comes to population growth and their expanding middle classes, but we wanted to explore the fastest growing major cities across the region in different countries, rather than just list the fastest developing cities by average GDP growth, which would heavily favour China and the subcontinent. So from southeast Asia to the islands of the south Pacific, we’re going to look at anywhere that city GDP growth is strong, in both established and expanding economies, assessing factors including migration growth, working age population, disposable incomes. labour markets, manufacturing drivers, likely future demand and particular opportunities within these growth hubs.
Bangalore, India
It shouldn’t be surprise to see India at the top of our list and Bengaluru, as it’s known locally, is a true megacity that has been growing at a phenomenal pace. Regarded as the Silicon Valley of India, it’s the country’s largest hub for tech companies, being home to the headquarters of Infosys, Wipro and eCommerce giant Flipkart among many others. It’s also considered a key incubator of startups and boasts over 12 million sq ft of office space.
Population: 13.6 million (3rd highest in India, 27th in the world)
Major Industries: IT, Biotech, Automotive, Aerospace, Electronics and Telecoms
Primary Airport: Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) is about 25 miles north of the city centre and acts as a hub for Air India and IndiGo as well as serving routes flown by Air France, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad, KLM, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Qantas, Singapore Airlines and Virgin Atlantic among others
GDP Per Capita (USD): $6,898
GDP Growth: 7.9%
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
The largest city in Vietnam is a booming centre of commerce and manufacturing undergoing rapid development thanks to major foreign investment, particularly from China. A regional economic powerhouse, the city once known as Saigon is responsible for 27.9% of the country’s industrial output. Its ports along the busy Mekong Delta are a major driver to the local and national economy, collectively forming the 24th busiest container port in the world.
Population: 9.4 million (1st highest in Vietnam, 31st in the world)
Major Industries: Mining, Construction, Financial Services, Shipping and Technology
Primary Airport: Tan Son Nhat International (SGN) is less than ten miles from the bustling city centre and serves as a hub for Vietnam Airlines and VietJet as well as being used by most major European and Asian airlines. It is not currently served by any US airlines and the only scheduled flights between Ho Chi Minh City and America are Vietnam Airlines’ route to San Francicso. A new airport 25 miles east of the city centre is currently under construction and expected to open in 2026. Once complete Long Thanh International will become the city’s primary hub for international traffic.
GDP Per Capita (USD): $6,328
GDP Growth: 6.46%
Jakarta, Indonesia
Indonesia’s capital city is the largest city in Southeast Asia and one of the world’s most overcrowded. Its wider metropolitan area is second only to Tokyo in terms of population and it continues to grow at a phenomenal pace. A regional tech hub for giants such as Google and Alibaba it is on track to become one of the world’s top 20 most economically influential cities, despite government plans to move the country’s capital to a new planned city on Borneo, Nusantara.
Population: 11.3 million
Major Industries: Manufacturing, Financial Services, Electronics, Automotive, Chemicals and Bioscience
Primary Airport: Soekarno-Hatta International (CGK) is about 25 miles from the city centre and is a hub for Batik Air, Citilink Indonesia, Garuda, Lion Air and Super Air Jet. KLM is the only major European carrier to serve the airport with most connections being within Asia. Like Ho Chi Minh City, there are no US carriers operating from the airport and currently no direct flights to or from north America are available.
GDP Per Capita (USD): $21,166
GDP Growth: 5.11%
Manila, Philippines
The political, cultural and economic centre of the Philippines, Manila is the world’s most densely populated city, despite being only the second most populous in the country (after Quezon City). Home to the busiest port in the Philippines it is a major hub for international shipping as well as being a world renowned centre for business process outsourcing (BPO)
Population: 13.4 million
Major Industries: Shipping, Financial Services, Retail, Real Estate, Oil and Manufacturing
Primary Airport: Ninoy Aquino International (MNL) is the largest airport in the Philippines and lies just 5 miles south of the city centre. A hub for Cebu Pacific, PAL Express and Philippine Airlines it is also served by AirAsia, Air France, All Nippon, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad, EVA Air, KLM, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Turkish and United, making it one of the best connected in the region.
GDP Per Capita (USD): $8,947
GDP Growth: 6.2%
All of these cities represent major growth markets for international business expansion and we’ll be back with more stats on Asia Pacific growth cities in our next post, including Bangkok, Shenzhen and Kuala Lumpur.