Band 8 model answer

The table provides data on the five most populous urban areas in 2020, showing their population in millions and annual growth rate as a percentage.

Overall, Tokyo was the largest urban area by a clear margin but was the only one experiencing population decline, while Delhi was the fastest-growing city despite ranking second in total population.

Tokyo's population of 37.4 million was considerably larger than any other city on the list, exceeding Delhi by more than 7 million. Shanghai ranked third at 27.1 million. Sao Paulo and Mexico City were the smallest of the five, at 22.0 million and 21.8 million respectively, with the two cities almost equal in size.

The growth figures presented an almost inverse pattern to the population rankings. Tokyo was the only city recording negative growth, at -0.2% per year, whereas Delhi grew at 3% annually, the fastest rate in the table. Shanghai followed at 2.0%, while Sao Paulo and Mexico City grew more modestly at 0.9% and 0.8% respectively. The contrast between Tokyo and Delhi is particularly striking: the world's largest urban area was shrinking while the second-largest was expanding at a rate more than ten times greater in absolute terms. These figures suggest that demographic momentum in the largest cities was shifting from East Asia toward South Asia.