Austria’s capital Vienna has bounced back as the world's most liveable city replacing Auckland in New Zealand which has come tumbling down to the 34th rank in the annual report of the Economist published today.

Auckland lost its position as the most liveable city on the planet due to the restrictions that have been clamped on the city to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Ukraine-Russia conflict has had its impact on the list, with Kyiv not included this year due to the war. Moscow and St Petersburg have plunged in the ratings due to "censorship" and the adverse impact of sanctions imposed by the West,  according to the report compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

"Vienna, which slipped to 12th place in our rankings in early 2021 as its museums and restaurants were closed, has since rebounded to first place, the position it held in 2018 and 2019," the report stated.

"Stability and good infrastructure are the city's main charms for its inhabitants, supported by good healthcare and plenty of opportunities for culture and entertainment."

Interestingly, Paris and London, which usually perform less well in the ranking because of big-city problems like congestion and crime, have soared 23 and 27 places to 19th and 33rd respectively, as they start to treat covid as endemic rather than a pandemic, the report states.

Six of the top ten cities on the list are located in Europe.

Denmark’s capital Copenhagen is ranked at the third spot while Switzerland's Zurich figures in the third position. Geneva came sixth, Germany's Frankfurt seventh, and the Netherlands' Amsterdam ninth.

Canada’s Calgary came in joint third position, followed by Vancouver in fifth place and Toronto in eighth.

Japan's Osaka and Australia's Melbourne shared the tenth place.

The Belgian capital Brussels was 24th, just behind Canada's Montreal.

Spain's Barcelona and Madrid came 35th and 43rd respectively.

Italy's Milan has been ranked number 49, the US city of New York 51, and China's Beijing came 71st.