(Yicai Global) March 29 -- The eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou led budget growth nationally among major cities in a new report, driven by the rapid development of the local economy, spearheaded by preeminent hometown-firm Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.'s assault on the digital sector.

Hangzhou's financial revenue totaled CNY292.1 billion (USD 46.4 billion) last year, up by 14.2 percent annually, while its general public budget revenue came to CNY156.7 billion, up 17.4 percent, a new report from domestic I-City Media Institute citing the Hangzhou Statistics Bureau data shows.

31 of China's cities posted a budget revenue exceeding CNY50 billion according to the "2018 Economic Strength Ranking of Chinese Cities" report, of which 14 reported double-digit growth annually. Key municipalities Shanghai and Beijing have a considerable lead over other cities in terms of budget revenue totals.

Over two-thirds of the 31 cities with public budget revenue above CNY50 billion are located on eastern China's coastal regions, which are traditionally more economically developed.

Jiangsu Province, China's second-biggest province in terms of economic production after Guangdong, boasts six cities with a general public budget revenue exceeding CNY50 billion. Guangdong and eastern Shandong provinces each have four cities with over CNY50 billion in public budget revenues.

Zhejiang Province, Fujian Province, and Liaoning Province each have two cities with general public budget above CNY50 billion.

The top 10 cities in the ranking are Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Chongqing, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Wuhan, and Chengdu.