Hong Kong, the most expensive city in the world and Geneva, the most expensive in Europe

The British consultancy firm ECA Internationala leading global provider of data and information for the management and assignment of expatriates, has published its annual list of the most expensive destinations to live in.

The cost of living index is based on the calculation of prices for food, household and leisure goods, services, clothing, electrical goods, alcohol and tobacco. Added to this are car maintenance, meals out, the cost of public services, public transport and rents. 207 cities around the world are examined under the microscope. The reference date for this study is March 2022.

The 2022 ranking includes cities that usually top the rankings: Hong Kong, New York, Geneva and London.. One might have thought that the health and political cloud that has hung over Hong Kong for the past two years would have contributed to a fall in the cost of living in the southern Chinese metropolis. This has not been the case. If Hong Kong has retained its position as the most expensive city in the worldAccording to ECA, this is due to the rise in prices and the appreciation of the currency over the past year.

" Although Hong Kong has been less affected by the rise in global inflation than other cities over the past year, it remains the most expensive city in the world.explains Lee Quane, Regional Director for Asia at ECA International. The year-on-year price increase of 3 %, as measured by our basket of goods and services, is higher than what we typically see in Hong Kong. Rather, it is the strength of the Hong Kong dollar, which is pegged to the US dollar, over the past year that has allowed it to maintain its position as the most expensive place in the world in the face of the weakening of other currencies." .

Inflation will also have pushed up Asia's city rankings. Out of the 20 most expensive cities in the world, 10 are in Asia. It is worth noting that Chinese cities continue to climb the rankings. Shanghai and Guangzhou now rank 8th and 9th, while Beijing has moved up two places to become the 14th most expensive city in the world. On the other hand, while Tokyo remains in the top 5Japan's capital fell three places. In particular, the yen has depreciated sharply over the past year. The Japanese currency has lost 20 % of its value in just a few months. Seoul also fell two places (from 8th to 10th), while Singapore remained stable.

A weak euro means cheaper towns and cities in the EU

In Europe, on the other hand, The top three of the most expensive cities on the continent remain the same! It includes Geneva, London and Zurich. It should be noted that the three cities are neither part of the European Union nor the euro zone. For the majority of EU cities, the weak euro has in fact rebalanced the cost of living.

Most EU cities saw their rankings fall after a period of euro instability. Paris has dropped out of the world's top 30 and cities such as Madrid, Brussels and Rome have also fallen. PVirtually all the major cities in the eurozone have seen their rankings fall this year as a result of the euro performing less well against the dollar and sterling over the last 12 months" says Lee Quane.

On the other hand, the revaluation of local currencies resulted in a jump in destinations as Tel Aviv, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro as well as Luanda. The capital of Angola jumped 108 places to become the 30th most expensive city in the world. Tel Aviv is in sixth place for expatriates (up one place), while Jerusalem is now ranked 15th, up from 18th a year ago.

In the United States, the top 20 cities include New York (from 4th to 2nd place this year) and San Francisco (from 15th to 11th place). But these two cities have become 'classics' in the list of the world's most expensive cities!

The top 20 most expensive destinations for expatriates worldwide

(Source: https://eca-international.com/insights/blog)

The top 20 most expensive destinations in Europe in 2022