Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang province was ranked eighth on the 2022 list of "Chinese Cities of Opportunities", according to a report recently released by the China Development Research Foundation (CDRF) and consultancy PwC China.

The report evaluated 47 major cities across the nation based on 10 factors, including economic strength, technology and innovation, city resilience, transportation and urban planning, sustainable development, and ease of doing business, with a quantitative evaluation system.

Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou were judged to have the greatest development and overall strength. They are followed by Hangzhou, Nanjing, Chengdu, Ningbo, Suzhou and Wuhan.

This is the first time Ningbo is in the top 10.

The city was ranked top in terms of "sustainable development" and fifth place in terms of "transportation and urban planning". It also performed well in the areas of "technology and innovation" and "ease of doing business".

Ningbo's economic strength has been growing steadily in recent years.

The city is currently home to 110 A-share listed companies, and its per capita GDP was 153,900 yuan ($23,677) in 2021. The balance of local and foreign currency deposits had hit 2.94 trillion yuan as of June, official data show.

The sustained effort to spur innovation has been a key factor behind its strong economic resilience. In 2021, the number of patents authorized in Ningbo reached 72,239, up 19.5 percent year-on-year.