Melbourne
is the state capital and largest city
in the Australian state of Victoria, and
the second-largest city in Australia,
with a population of approximately 3.7
million (2006 estimate). Melbourne is
the southernmost city in the world to
have a population of over one million
people. Melbourne has twice shared top
position in a survey by The Economist
of The World's Most Livable Cities on
the basis of its cultural attributes,
climate, cost of living, and social conditions
such as crime rates and health care, once
in 2002,[3] and again in 2004. The US's
Utne Reader puts it thus: "Add a
long tradition of civic pride, communities
of new immigrants from around the world,
and the best food in Australia, and you
have a recipe for what many claim is the
hippest city in the Southern Hemisphere"
(Nov/Dec 2001). Melbourne is home to Australia's
three largest corporations, Telstra, BHP
Billiton and the National Australia Bank.
It
is also home to the Business Council of
Australia, the Australian Council of Trade
Unions and the majority of companies listed
on the Australian Stock Exchange. Melbourne
hosts major Australian sporting events
including: the Melbourne Spring Racing
Carnival (including the 'race that stops
the nation', the Melbourne Cup), the Australian
Formula One Grand Prix, the Australian
Tennis Open and the AFL Grand Final. Melbourne
hosted the first Olympic Games in the
southern hemisphere in 1956, as well as
the 2006 Commonwealth Games. Melbourne
has undergone a major urban 'revival',
such that it is sometimes classed as being
in a second tier of "world cities";
the GaWC study group in the UK ranks Melbourne,
on the basis of relative availability
of specialised "advanced services,"
as a minor (or Gamma) "world city"
comparable with cities such as Montreal,
Osaka, and Prague.
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