The 2018 survey for the most attractive Chinese cities for expats officially kicked off.

The annual survey, organized by International Talent Magazine and China Society for Research on International Professional Personnel Exchange and Development, has served as an important window for expatriates to learn about China. It is the only national survey participated in exclusively by foreign experts working and living in China, including Nobel Prize laureates and Chinese Friendship Award recipients. The annual survey began in 2010 and is now in its eighth year.

As of last year, Shanghai has topped the list five times in a row, having scored highest both in working and living environments. Hangzhou, ranked third in 2016, performed well and greatly closed the gap between it and Beijing, which was second on the list. For the list of most attractive cities in western China, Chengdu has led the race two years in a row.

Economic reasons continue to dominate the list of reasons why expats choose to work in China. Employment opportunities were voted as the reason to come to China by 57.2 percent of voters. More than half of respondents, 55.3 percent, took urban environment and pollution into consideration when choosing a city to work in China.

Climbing up the career ladder and enhancing working environments was a core need for expats. 39.1 percent of voters hoped to work in China in the long term. 71.6 percent were satisfied with their pay, and 36.1 percent expressed a willingness to stay in China for the long run.

This year's survey, the ninth of its kind, is more engaging and targeted. Top ten nominees were selected by Nobel Prize laureates and Chinese Friendship Award recipients, as well as renowned expats living and working in China. Four indexes will be looked at, namely policy, governmental environment, working and living conditions. Furthermore, Chinese cities with the most potential will also be selected.

The survey will also work closely with "city openness and talent recruitment" to showcase the effort China has made to attract foreign talent, as well as the preferences expats have when working or starting business in China, so as to put more emphasis on building an environment to attract more high-level expats to come to China.

This year's survey results will be released in April 2019.

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