Delhi has overtaken Mumbai to become India’s economic capital: Oxford Economics study

Delhi beat Mumbai to become the country’s top metropolitan economy in 2015, according to the data released by Oxford Economics.

Oxford Economics, a leading independent global advisory firm, provides reports, forecasts and analytical tools on 200 countries, 100 industrial sectors and 3,000 cities.

Delhi ranked 30th in Oxford Economics’ study of the top 50 metropolitan entities globally for the year 2015, whereas the country’s financial capital, Mumbai, ranked 31st.

According to their findings, Delhi Extended Urban Agglomeration (EUA) consisting of Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad had a GDP of $370 billion, in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).

In comparison, the GDP of Mumbai EUA (Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Vasai, Virar, Bhiwandi and Panvel) was pegged at $368 billion.

The firm’s forecast for 2030 shows that both Delhi and Mumbai will move further up the list. However, Mumbai, with a predicted rank of 14th will continue to trail behind Delhi, which will be ranked 11th.

With a lower population, Mumbai EUA scores better than Delhi EUA in terms of per capita. An analysis of the Oxford Economics’ figures by TOI puts Mumbai’s per capita GDP at PPP at $16,881, while Delhi stands at $15,745.

While some experts believe that Delhi is surging ahead of Mumbai due to the lower cost of doing business, which has a cascading impact on economy, one argument in Mumbai’s favor is the area in consideration.

Since the area considered by Oxford Economics for Delhi is roughly three times that of Mumbai, a higher GDP for the former is inevitable.

Meanwhile, while speaking to the daily, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis rejected the notion that Delhi has surged ahead of Mumbai in terms of GDP.

“I want to challenge these figures. From figures of the Reserve Bank of India, Economic Survey of India and Maharashtra, it is evident that Mumbai is ahead in terms of GDP and financial status. The MMR GDP is higher,” he said.