METROPOLITAN

The 10 biggest city areas by population:

1 Tokyo, Japan 26,959,000
2 Mexico City, Mexico 16,562,000
3 Sao Paulo, Brazil 16,533,000
4 New York City, USA 16,332,000
5 Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India 15,138,000
6 Shanghai, China 13,584,000
7 Los Angeles, USA 12,410,000
8 Calcutta, India 11,923,000
9 Buenos Aires, Argentina 11,802,000
10 Seoul, South Korea 11,609,000

Source: 1996 figures for 'urban areas'