A.T. Kearney, a global management consulting firm, has published the report on the 2014 Global Cities Index (GCI), which examines how globally engaged these cities in fact are.

Covering a total of 84 cities around the world, including 18 new additions, the research measures the cities across 26 measures in five dimensions: business activity, human capital, information exchange, cultural experience and political engagement.

New York leads this year’s ranking with a total score of 61.7. It has been the ruling champion ever since the first report was released in 2008.

Although the top positions in the GCI are stable and difficult to break into, Beijing has successfully squeezed into the top 10 for the first time, surpassing Seoul, Brussels, Singapore and Washington D.C. to rank eighth, thanks to an increase in the city’s number of Fortune 500 companies, international schools, broadband subscribers and museums.

Same as in the previous rankings, Hong Kong remains at No. 5.

Shanghai, at number 18 in the index, outperforms Beijing in terms of human capital, due to its larger foreign-born population, greater number of inhabitants with tertiary education and high number of international schools. It also scores well in the business activity category.

Among the top 20 cities, seven are situated in the Asia Pacific region, seven in Europe and six in the Americas. Cairo is the leading city in Africa, remaining in the top 50.

Launched every two years, the report is the fourth of its kind.

The following are the top 10 global cities ranked by A.T. Kearney.

 Washington, United States

Score: 33.4

Rank in 2012: No. 10

Rank in 2010: No. 13

Rank in 2008: No. 11