By Faris
Mokhtar | Yahoo!
Newsroom – 18 hours ago
Singapore has jumped two places to be the sixth most expensive
city in Asia, according to a global survey.
This comes on the back of a stronger local dollar against major
currencies and a 5.7 per cent rise in the average price of goods
and services.
For the first time, Singapore also ranked ahead of its closest
competitor Hong Kong, which slipped from sixth last year to ninth
position in this year.
The annual Cost of Living survey, conducted by ECA
International in September this year, used indicators comprising of
day-to-day goods and services such as the price of groceries,
clothing and electrical goods. It measured cost of living in more
than 400 cities.
Regional director of ECA International Asia Lee Quane said, “When
we look at the overall cost of ECA’s basket of goods and services
in Singapore a year ago, these items were 1.7 per cent less
expensive in Singapore than when purchased in Hong Kong.”
“Now those same items are 8.5 per cent more expensive in Singapore
than Hong Kong.”
With rising prices in the Lion City, Quane noted that this might
erode some of the cost advantage that Singapore used to have over
other destinations in the region.
For one, companies will now have to pay their staff a higher
allowance when they send them to Singapore, she said. However, the
rising prices are “unlikely” to deter companies from relocating
their staff to the country, she added.
Compared to countries worldwide, Singapore rose from 42nd to 32nd
position while Hong Kong, which saw an increase in the price of
goods, dropped 26 places to 58th position – the largest fall among
Asian cities.
"When we look at Hong Kong in a regional context, the weak dollar
means that the city is now cheaper than a number of other locations
including Singapore, Beijing and Shanghai, where not only has there
been significant price inflation but also currencies have
strengthened,” said Quane.
Meanwhile, Tokyo remains the most expensive city in Asia for the
second consecutive year. It is followed by three other Japanese
cities, Nagoya, Yokohama and Kobe, as well as the Korean city of
Seoul.
Rounding up the top ten after Singapore is Beijing, Shanghai, Hong
Kong and Busan.
The Japanese capital also topped the global ranking for the second
year running, due largely to the recent sharp rise of the country’s
currency. Coming in second and third are Oslo and Geneva.
