Comparative Advantages and Disadvantages of Five Northeast Asian Cities

Northeast Asia's burgeoning mage- cities have an extraordinarily economic vitality. While national statistics disguies how economic activity is concentrated, much of the region's robust growth of recent decades has centered around large cities, such as Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing, Shaghia, Hongkong. These cities are also at the heart of the Northeast Asia's emerging reional economy. This paper aims to compare the advantages and disad- vantages of these selected Northeast Asia cities in various categories of urban competitiveness and cooperation. Above all, the paper compares the individual cities with one another, and analyzes relations and linkages among them. Then, strengths that can be reinforced and weakness that can be overcome are identified for each city. Finally, an urban development strategy for Seoul in the context development strategy for Seoul in the context of Northeast Asian cities is provided : I) Seoul should strive to be an effective regional capital of Northeast Asia ; ii) Seoul should be a focal point for the intermingling of Chinese, Japanese and Western cultures.