ISLAMABAD – After topping the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Worldwide Costof Living Survey for five years, Asia’s Lion City Singapore has been joinedby Paris and Hong Kong in a tie at the top of the table.
Zurich and Geneva rounded out the top five, while New York and Los Angelesreclaimed spots in the top 10 — ranking in seventh and 10th respectively —after slipping to 13th and 14th last year thanks to a weakening dollar.
The survey is designed to help companies calculate cost-of-livingallowances and build compensation packages for expatriates and businesstravelers.
The trio of cities sharing the top spot are 7 percent more expensive tolive in than New York, according to the EIU, which compiles its list from asurvey of 160 products and servicesacross 93 countries.
The Japanese port city of Osaka was another re-entry, moving up six spotsto number five. Seoul (joint seventh place), Copenhagen (also seventh) andTel Aviv (10th) round out the top 10 — which actually consists of 11 citiesthanks to tied places.
‘Weaker local currencies have pushed all five Australian and two NewZealand cities surveyed down in the ranking,’ the EIU said, accounting forSydney’s absence after it scraped into 10th position in last year’s report.
Outsidethe top 10, the EIU said the cost of living in Chinese citiesremains relatively stable, while Southeast Asian destinations were movingup the ranks.
One of the factors behind Asia’s strong showing at the top of the table isthat some Asian cities are among the world’s priciest locations for generalgrocery shopping, according to the EIU.
But while parts of Asia remain the most expensive places on Earth, thecontinent also makes several appearances at the bottom of the list. -Bloomberg