Urban agglomerations play an increasingly significant role in the process of regional and national participation in
international labour division and competition. how to understand cities’ positions within urban agglomeration, and
how to promote economic development through complementarity-ness is a significant or worthwhile research subject.
This thesis took 11 cities from Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, one of the most developed
urban agglomerations in China as a case to clarify the characteristics of urban relationships and their impacts on
urban economic development. First, it measured and analysed the influencing paths of intercity relationships on urban
economic which were based on urban aggregation and diffusion effects, urban economic network and industrial
division of labour. Second, it judged intercity relationship as either competition or complementarity according to
the quantitative outcomes of the relationships of three industrial sectors. Finally, this thesis tested and evaluated the
impacts of intercity competition on urban economic development.

Authors: Jianhua Zhang