KL was on the same rung as Mumbai and Johannesburg in the study which was a joint project between Singapore's Civil Service College and the Center for Demographics and Policy at the California-based Chapman University.
"These are significant centres of global production, but limited in their international scope and have little role in the 'command and control' of international commerce," a report on the study said referring to developing cities in Asia including KL.
The report noted that it seems "unlikely" for cities like KL to become global cities in the immediate or even mid-range future.
Singapore ranked fourth ― after London, New York and Paris ― and was dubbed "Asia's premier global city". Bangkok came in at 34 th and Jakarta at 44th.
According to the study, Singapore has among the best basic infrastructure in the world, and does "very well" on other measurements of business friendliness and competitiveness.
It also said that Singapore had benefited from a tradition of British governance and law, which resulted in its civil justice system and business climate being critically acclaimed.
The study ranked the cities based on eight categories ― industry dominance and hub status,foreign direct investment, diversity, air connectivity, corporate headquarters, producer services, financial services, and technology and media.
A separate study by London-based magazine The Economist's Intelligence Unit said that KL will struggle to keep up with regional leaders come the year 2025.
It predicted that competitive cities in the Asian region in 2025 will be divided among the two groups, one that will include Seoul and Incheon in South Korea, Taipei in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, and another with advanced economies (Tokyo, Sydney and Melbourne).
In the study titled "Hot Spots 2025: Benchmarking the future competitiveness of cities", KL was ranked 31st out of 120 cities.
Despite the prognosis, KL's competitiveness is predicted to increase from its last measurement in 2012, when it was ranked 39th.
KL also led other countries in the Southeast Asia other than Singapore, as Bangkok was placed 62nd, Jakarta 74th, and Hanoi 112nd.
The ranking measured each country's competitiveness through several indices: "economic strength", "physical capital", "financial maturity", "institutional character", "social and cultural character", "human capital", "environment and natural hazards", and "global appeal".
In the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Ranking last year, Malaysia was ranked 24th among 148 countries in the world; and second in South and Southeast Asia, after Singapore.
Meanwhile, in the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2014 released by the Institute of Management Development in May this year, Malaysia was ranked 12th, ahead of countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Finland, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.
Source : http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/kuala-lumpur-not-heading-for-global-city-status-says-study
