Asia is home to half of the ten most expensive cities across the globe, with Singapore being the most expensive city to live, according to a report by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).
Singapore was closely followed by Hong Kong at the second spot, the Worldwide Cost of Living for 2017 revealed.
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Tokyo and Osaka made their return to their top ten taking up the fourth and fifth spot, respectively. The Japanese capital, which was the most expensive city in the world until 2012, moved seven places up the ranking due to a sustained recovery in the strength of the Japanese yen. Seoul took up the sixth spot as the most expensive city.
The study added that Singapore remains significantly cheaper compared with its peers in categories such as personal care, household goods and domestic help, though it remains the most expensive place to buy and run a car, and the second-priciest place to buy clothes.
Seoul, Tokyo and Osaka were found to be the three most expensive places worldwide to buy staple goods.
In Europe, Zurich took the third spot as the most expensive city worldwide. European cities of Geneva and Paris tied at the seventh spot, while Copenhagen took up the tenth spot in the ranking.
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By GlobalDataNew York is the only North American city to find a place in the top ten. The city dropped to the ninth spot, driven by a slight weakening of the US dollar that also had an impact on the position of other cities in the US.
Cost of living in UK cities recorded a decline owing to the devaluation of the British pound in 2016. Notably, London dropped 18 places in the global cost of living ranking to the 24th spot this year, its lowest position in the cost of living ranking in two decades, while Manchester in the UK dipped by 25 places to 51st.
Meanwhile, the cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil emerged as the fastest–rising cities in the cost of living ranking, moving up 29 and 27 places, respectively.
