Hong Kong is now fourth most expensive Asian city for expats
Survey finds the city rose from eighth place thanks to stronger currency
Hong Kong is now the fourth most expensive city in Asia for expatriates due to high inflation and a strong US currency, a study has found, while Shanghai overtook Tokyo to top the list.
Shanghai came out as the most expensive Asian city for expatriates, followed by Beijing, Seoul, Hong Kong then Guangzhou. Hong Kong ranked eighth in Asia last year.
The consultancy's regional director for Asia, Lee Quane, said Hong Kong rose to fourth in the region partly because of the strength of the city's currency.
"The Hong Kong dollar is pegged against the US dollar. As the US dollar has strengthened against most major currencies such as the Australian dollar [and] the Japanese yen, so too has the Hong Kong dollar," Lee said. "It also reflects the fact that price rises [in Hong Kong] are relatively high in comparison with other major developed economies. We have seen in the course of the past 12 months, in Hong Kong dollar terms, the price of goods in our basket rise by 3 per cent."
Globally, South Sudan's capital, Juba, is the most expensive city, followed by Luanda, the capital of Angola, and Zurich in Switzerland. Hong Kong's global ranking rose from 29th most expensive last year to 12th this year.
Lee explained that although the general cost of living for Africans living in Juba and Luanda was lower than many other cities in the world, the two cities topped the list because the consultancy took into account goods commonly bought by expatriates.
Those items, including imported goods and eating in restaurants, are not necessarily what locals tend to seek.
Property is not considered in the study because multinational companies usually offer accommodation allowances.
