A new report by consulting firm Kearney shows Chinese cities grew by over 3% on average this year, thanks to their quick recovery and effective pandemic control measures.
In contrast, other cities around the world saw average growth in their Global Cities Index (GCI) score of less than 1% as a result of the coronavirus crisis, while some even experienced negative growth.
“In the wake of a year of devastation and uncertainty, global cities proved their resilience. Now, as they seek to lead the global recovery, cities must define a new approach to globalism with resilience and urban well-being at the core,” said the report.
China also performed strongly in the Global Cities Outlook (GCO), rising by over 3% over the past five years, the fastest in any region. Kearney said that Chinese cities have narrowed the gap with their European and North American counterparts.
Leading global cities have demonstrated resilience and adaptability despite initially being hit hard by Covid-19 due to their high connectivity and density.
New York, London, Paris, and Tokyo retained the top four positions on the index. Los Angeles rose by two positions to fifth place. Beijing settled in sixth, followed by Hong Kong, while Shanghai rose two places to break into the top 10 for the first time.
The report covered and ranked 156 cities, including 31 in China.
Two European cities saw major protests against mandatory coronavirus health passes on Saturday, with large crowds once again taking to the streets to decry the measure in Paris and Milan.
In the French capital, several thousand people marched through the city despite the rainy weather, carrying banners, beating drums, and chanting slogans like: “Health pass, we don’t want it.”
The health pass “smells like a social credit system, we have the impression that we are in a kind of training,” one of the demonstrators told RT’s Ruptly video agency.
Among those taking part in the protests were doctors and nurses who are unable to work due to their reluctance to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
“They force us to be vaccinated to continue working. I work at the hospital. Currently, I am suspended and without pay since September 6,” one protester said.
There was a hefty police presence at the rally, but the crowd was peaceful, with no major incidents reported during the event.
The health pass system, which requires proof of vaccination or a negative test in order to access restaurants, cinemas, and other public venues, will remain in force in France at least until the end of February.
In Italy, the rules are even stricter, with QR codes required for employees in the public and private sectors to access their workplaces. A huge crowd gathered outside the iconic Milan Cathedral on Saturday to protest.
Demonstrators with Italian flags and cardboard crosses called the requirement for a health pass “discrimination.”
They marched through the streets and made a stop outside the offices of public broadcaster Rai Italia to protest the coverage of the pandemic in the Italian media.
Viral Russian internet sensation Hasbulla Magomedov stole the limelight at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi by entering the octagon, meeting some of promotion's biggest figures, and even clashing with his rival Abdu Rozik.
UFC president Dana White had already excited fans ahead of Saturday night's action by releasing a video of Hasbulla saying he was looking forward to a meeting between the pair.
Mainly on pundit duties, former light heavyweight and heavyweight "champ champ" Daniel Cormier also gushed at having met the breakout star of 2021, who first shot to global fame earlier this year when he was touted as fighting fellow pint-sized blogger Abdu Rozik.
To caption a video of him smiling as Hasbulla let off a cheap and cheeky rabbit punch, Cormier wrote: "Can’t believe I dropped my hands around this guy! I deserved it."
Yet while this was limited to social media, Hasbulla reached a far bigger audience when front and center on the card that was free and not pay-per-view in many countries.
After Islam Makhachev's stunning first-round win over Dan Hooker, the figure who had previously been ringside entered the octagon where he was picked up and swung into the air by the victor.
Then passed on to Khabib Nurmagomedov, he later took pictures with the 29-0 lightweight great who formed part of title hopeful Makhachev's corner.
As fellow Russian Petr Yan claimed the bantamweight interim title at Cory Sandhagen's expense, and Glover Teixeira became the oldest first-time UFC champion ever at 42 by dethroning previous light heavyweight king Jan BΕachowicz, a pumped-up Hasbulla got physical himself in the crowd.
There, he clashed with arch-nemesis Abdu Rozik, with footage of the incident captured and uploaded by boxer Amir Khan.
"It's going off. Who you got winning?" asked Khan, with the viral scuffle seen almost 3.5 million times.
The UFC had earlier tweeted Tajik blogger Abdu Rozik showing off his fighting skills with a series of shadowboxing blows, writing:"Business just picked up."
And now it remains to be seen if the pair can finally settle their differences after Hasbulla's purse demands supposedly got in the way of a previously planned meeting.
