The Cantonese mega-cities of Shenzhen and Guangzhou have topped the list of Chinese cities with the fastest growing populations in 2018.
According to a report from Yicai Shenzhen and Guangzhou saw their populations increase by approximately 498,300 and 406,000 residents respectively last year.
The Shaanxi province capital of Xi’an took third place in terms of population increase last year while the Zhejiang province capital of Hangzhou came in fourth, with both cities seeing gains of over 300,000 denizens.
Chengdu came in fifth and Chongqing in sixth place, followed by Zhengzhou, Foshan, Changsha and Ningbo, all of which saw population increases of more than 200,000.
Hu Gang (胡刚), a professor from Jinan University and head of the South China Urban Research Association (华南城市研究会), said that Shenzhen and Guangzhou’s sharp population rise stands in sharp contrast to population trends for the two other key first-tier cities of Beijing and Shanghai.
According to Hu Beijing and Shanghai have already reached overcapacity with populations in excess of 20 million each, leading to severe traffic congestion and prompting municipal authorities to unveil population targets.
The populations of Guangzhou and Sheznhen remain under 15 million however while residency requirements remain comparatively loose, prompting a shift in migration away from Beijing and Shanghai in favour of the two southern Chinese mega-cities.
