Auckland needs a bit of Bilbao - by making the best of its port - and a piece of Pittsburgh (by creating a new knowledge-based industry) to transform itself into one of the world's 'Magnet Cities'.

It's hard to imagine that Bilbao, an iconic centre of European culture and creativity, was a city in chaos and despair less than 30 years ago - and that it successfully dealt with one of the major problems facing Auckland.

Malmo turned itself from a polluted, ugly, declining shipbuilding centre into the exact opposite - a clean, green global capital for sustainable living.

It's easy to say Pittsburgh, a fading steel town, was rescued by its universities.

Christchurch, one of the world's nine 'Magnet Cities', should be forming itself into a technology testbed and building attractive infrastructure - like canals in the Red Zone and a world-class sports stadium.

'Did you see that Countdown is selling insurance?" a friend emailed last week. My initial response was: "There's nothing new in that."

New Zealand primary producers need to be prepared to do things differently in a rapidly changing world if they are to retain their place in global food markets, says KPMG.

Video file for KPMG Feature Profile