The capital city of East China’s Fujian province has cracked the list of first-tier cities in the country, according to a ranking released by CBNweekly.

The Shanghai Media Group-owned financial magazine includes as many as 15 cities on the list for the first time in addition to the four metropolitan areas of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

The new finalists have a solid economic foundation, a massive number of middle class people and “considerable political resources”. They boast strong educational resources, deep cultural heritage and convenient traffic as well, which all make those cities strategically vital for big enterprises and desired by more professionals, the magazine explains.

Previously the selection of top-tier cities was base in the main on the GDP levels, it added.

Xiamen, a famous tourist city in southern Fujian, also made the first-tier city list.

The magazine also selected 36 second-tier cities, including Quanzhou city in Fujian. They are mainly capitals in eastern and middle China and coastal cities. With their sound economic foundation and the vitality of commerce, they will also appeal to companies and professionals, it says.

The ranking triggered heated discussion on the Internet. And many of Fuzhou’s residents, instead of being proud, are dubious and even sarcastic about the results.

“In terms of the cost of living, yeah, you can definitely say that Fuzhou is ‘top-tier’,” wrote a microblogger on Weibo.

“Please remind me how many years Fuzhou has spent on the construction of the subway system. What a joke!” another blogger with the moniker fyo-Ho echoed.