Shanghai ranked 1st in 2018 among the most appealing Chinese cities for expats to work and live for the seventh year in a row, according to an annual survey.

Zhang Jianguo, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology, announced the results at the International Exchange of Professionals on April 14 in Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

The results are based on votes from 94,849 online foreign users, including 193 votes from winners of the Nobel Prize, Turing Award, Chinese Government Friendship Award and other high-end foreign experts.

As the financial hub of China, the city was recognized for its excellent performance in building a favorable environment for foreign talents to achieve their dreams.

In recent years, Shanghai has rolled out a series of supporting policies to improve working and living conditions for foreign talents and has attracted 215,000 foreigners to work in the city, ranking 1st in the country and accounting for 23.7 percent of the total foreigners in the country.

Since the implementation of the upgraded work permit system in April 2017, Shanghai has issued more than 120,000 work permits for foreigners, more than 18 percent of which were for high-end foreign talents, a record high in terms of both quantity and quality.

In addition, the city is actively introducing foreign talents into key fields and major projects in an effort to construct a science and technology innovation center. In 2018, Shanghai carried out nearly 100 projects worth 15 million yuan ($2.24 million) designed to import talent from abroad. It succeeded in bringing in a total of more than 500 foreign experts.

Zhang Jianguo, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology, announces that Shanghai ranked 1st among the most attractive Chinese cities for expats at the International Exchange of Professionals in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, on April 14. [Photo/Chinanews.com]