Hong Kong out of top 10 priciest cities for expatriates
June 19, 2018 Category China News Round-up, Weekly
Hong Kong, the second-most expensive city in the world for expatriates last year, has fallen out of the top 10 of most expensive cities because of the weakness of its currency, a cost of living survey has found. The survey of 250 major world cities was conducted by ECA International in March and looked at 170 day-to-day costs including food, clothing, transport and leisure services. “Although the price of goods has continued to rise in Hong Kong in the past 12 months, its currency has weakened,” Lee Quane, Asia Regional Director at human resources consultancy ECA International. Prices rose 2% in Hong Kong from March 2017 to March 2018, the survey said. “It doesn’t mean Hong Kong’s competitiveness has been threatened,” Quane said. “The drop means it’s cheaper for companies to move somebody to Hong Kong compared with Tokyo or Seoul.” Housing prices were not included in the survey. “It’s hard to combine housing costs to daily expenditures since expatriates who are single and those with family have different housing needs,” Quane said.
Hong Kong was surpassed by three cities in Asia – Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai. Luanda in Angola was knocked off the top spot by Caracas in Venezuela. Tokyo was ranked the most expensive city in Asia and seventh in the world, while Hong Kong was the fourth in the region and 11th globally. Shanghai is now the 10th most expensive city for expats in the world and the third most expensive in Asia. “Shanghai overtook Hong Kong because of the strength of the yuan. There were very minimal changes in prices,” said Quane.
Chinese cities generally climbed higher in rankings, as the yuan rose against major currencies such as the U.S. dollar. Second tier cities in China saw a bigger rise as their economies grew at a faster pace, which resulted in higher inflation rates. Xiamen, a coastal city in Fujian province, jumped 13 places in the ranking to the 41st, the biggest rise among Chinese cities. Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur was the Asian city that gained the most, soaring by 29 places, thanks to the strengthening of the ringgit, Quane said. Brussels rose by 51 places in the ranking.
A similar survey conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in March also found Hong Kong dropped two places to the fourth most expensive city in the world.
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