Singapore ranked 8th most expensive city for expats

LONDON - SINGAPORE has entered the top 10 list of Mercer's 2011 cost of living survey, moving up two spots to be ranked the 8th most expensive city for expatriates. Angola's capital, Luanda, has retained the unenviable title of the world's most expensive city for expatriates, narrowly edging out Tokyo, according to the survey published on Tuesday.




At the other end of the scale, the Mercer group's study named the Pakistani port Karachi as the least expensive city, with living around three times cheaper than in Luanda.



New entries in the top 10 list of the costliest cities in the world for expatriates are Singapore (8), up from 11, and Sao Paolo (10), which has jumped 11 places since the 2010 ranking.



The most expensive city in Asia is Tokyo (2), followed by Osaka (6). Singapore (8) has joined the list of the world's top 10 most expensive cities in the world due to the strengthening of the Singapore Dollar and the substantial increase in housing costs.



It is followed by Hong Kong (9) whose ranking dropped by one position due to the devaluation of the Hong Kong Dollar which is pegged to the US Dollar, even though there was considerable increase in housing costs.



During the past year, the US Dollar has devalued against most Asian currencies. In particular, the Singapore Dollar and Australian Dollar appreciated considerably, not only against the US Dollar, but against other currencies such as the Euro and British Pound. -- AFP



Background:

The Mercer cost of living survey covers 214 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. It is the world's most comprehensive cost of living survey and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees. New York is used as the base city and all cities are compared against New York. Currency movements are measured against the US dollar. The cost of housing - often the biggest expense for expatriates - plays an important part in determining where cities are ranked.