The share market has experienced an upward trajectory over the course of 2016, whilst business confidence remains positive in this low-interest environment,” says Ms Ciesielski. “Locally, Australia has seen a steady recovery in non-mining activity towards a more services sector- dominated economy.

“Australia is highly ranked for lifestyle and well-placed for the education of future generations, despite the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) application fees, as well as foreign investor duties and land tax surcharges in Sydney and Melbourne. Knight Frank Residential Research Director Michelle Ciesielski, states that Australia is considered highly desirable for long-term wealth preservation, although there is still global uncertainty. It’s no wonder why both cities have seen a slight reduction over the past three months, due to the residential property markets slowing down, after coming out of a booming market. Interestingly, the Quarter 1 report for 2016 ranked Sydney and Melbourne in third and fourth position respectively with a growth of 12.3% and 12.1% over the 12-month period to March 2016. However, over the past three months, Sydney grew at 4.6% compared to Melbourne’s 1.8% and both markets are expected to slow down. Melbourne’s prices increased by 11% over the last 12 months to June 2016, whilst Sydney grew by 10.2%. Vancouver remains at the top of the ranking for the fifth consecutive quarter within the Prime Global Cities Index and has recorded the strongest price inflation, where prime residential prices surged by 36% in the year to June 2016.Īnother Canadian city ranked within the top 10 which was Toronto at number four with 12.6% growth over the past 12 months, whilst Melbourne and Sydney ranked fifth and sixth respectively. In the year to June 2016, the index increased by 4.4%, the highest rate of growth over the past two years. The Prime Global Cities Index tracks prime residential prices across 37 global cities worldwide on a quarterly basis.

According to the latest research from the independent global property consultancy firm Knight Frank, Melbourne and Sydney have been ranked within the top ten of the Knight Frank Prime Global Cities Index for Quarter 2.

Global cities index 2016