This OECD Territorial Review examines how Seoul – a city of 10.3 million people at the core of a capital region of 22.5 million people – is striving to upgrade its positioning from a gigantic national capital towards a 'world city' and a business hub in Northeast Asia. This quest for international competitiveness fits within a complex national agenda that gives priority to balanced development across the country, notably via the central government’s project to relocate administrative functions outside Seoul.