INTERNATIONAL REWARD
Mercer cost-of-living survey 2009
Tokyo has knocked Moscow off the top spot to become the world’s most expensive city for expatriates, according to an annual survey by Mercer.
Osaka is in second position, up nine places since last year, whereas Moscow is now in third place. Geneva climbs four places to fourth position and Hong Kong moves up one to reach fifth. Johannesburg has replaced Asunción in Paraguay as the least expensive city in the ranking.
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In Mercer’s survey, New York is used as the base city for the index and scores 100 points, all cities are compared against New York and currency movements are measured against the US dollar. Tokyo scores 143.7 points and is nearly three times as costly as Johannesburg with an index score of 49.6.
Currency fluctuations
A significant reshuffle of cities can be observed in this year’s ranking, mainly due to considerable currency fluctuations worldwide.
The majority of European cities moved down in the ranking with Warsaw experiencing the most dramatic change, plummeting 78 places from 35th to 113th. London and Oslo, both previously in the top 10, have dropped 13 and 10 places respectively.
The same trend can be seen in Australia, New Zealand and India. Sydney has dropped 51 places from 15th to 66th and Mumbai has slipped down to 66th from 48th place.
Cities in the US, China, Japan and the Middle East have surged in the ranking. New York is a new entry in the top 10, jumping from 22nd to 8th place, and so is Beijing, now in 9th place, up from 20th in 2008. Japan now has two cities in the top 10 and Dubai has climbed 32 places to reach 20th.
A final word
“As a direct impact of the economic downturn over the last year we have observed significant fluctuations in most of the world’s currencies, which have had a profound impact on this year’s ranking. Many currencies, including the Euro and British pound, have weakened considerably against a strong US dollar causing a number of European cities to plummet in the rankings. With significant exposure to multiple economies and currencies, multinational companies continue to be greatly affected by the financial crisis. The cost of expatriate programmes is heavily influenced by currency fluctuations and inflation rates. Now that cost containment and reduction is at the top of most company agendas, keeping track of the change in factors that dictate expatriate cost of living and housing allowances is essential.” - Nathalie Constantin-Métral, a senior researcher at Mercer.
Want to know more?
Title: Cost of Living Survey 2009, Mercer.
Survey sample: The survey covers 143 cities across six continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. It is used to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowance for their expatriate employees.
The figures are based on a survey conducted in March 2009.The information is used by governments and major companies to protect the purchasing power of their employees when transferred abroad; rental accommodation costs data is used to assess local expatriate housing allowances. The choice of cities surveyed is based on the demand for corresponding data from companies and governmental organisations.
Availability: Individual cost of living and rental accommodation cost reports are produced for each city surveyed. For further information or to purchase copies of the city reports, visit www.mercer.com/costofliving, or call Information Product Solutions, Warsaw, tel: +48 22 434 5383.
Read the full press release online at www.mercer.com/summary.htm?siteLanguage=100&idContent=1311145.
Mercer is a “leading global provider of consulting, outsourcing and investment services”. Its 18,000 employees are based in more than 40 countries. For more information, visit www.mercer.com.