New York City, along with Singapore, is the most expensive city to live in, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit.
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Singapore is once again ranked as the most expensive city to live in, sharing the top spot with New York City this year, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).
This is the eighth time in 10 years that Singapore has topped the list. Both Singapore and New York City have knocked last year’s leader Tel Aviv down to third place thanks to higher inflation and a stronger currency, the EIU reports in its new report. Cost of living survey around the world of 172 cities.
According to the survey, the average price of goods in local currency has increased by 8.1 percent this year, citing a poll the company conducted from August 16 to September 16. up from the 3.5% price increase reported by EIU’s. 2021 survey.
Upasana Dutt, head of Global Cost of Living at EIU, told CNBC that supply chain disruptions due to China’s Covid-free policy and the Russia-Ukraine war are the two main reasons for high inflation. more this year.
“These two things combined have created more pressure on access to goods and the availability of products that make up [the] very basic human needs. And these two together, then drove inflation around the world,” she said.
The research and analysis company found that the biggest price increase was in gasoline. On average, gasoline prices increased by 22% year-on-year.
Dutt said oil prices were “very, very extreme” and were “one of the highest we’ve ever recorded in the history of our data collection.”
High inflation in the US
The US Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 375 basis points this year due to persistently high inflation, and a smaller rate hike could happen in December.
That has significantly boosted the US dollar, making goods more expensive.
“New York is on this list for the first time. So it’s quite unusual for the US dollar to strengthen so much and get to where it is now,” Dutt said.
The EIU said other US cities also increased the index as the greenback strengthened.
Los Angeles has risen from ninth place in 2021 to fourth this year. San Francisco — which didn’t make the top 10 last year — is now the eighth most expensive city to live in.
Six of the 10 cities with the biggest leaps were also in the United States. These include Atlanta, San Diego and Boston.
This is the eighth time in 10 years that Singapore has topped the list.
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Singapore’s top spot is no surprise.
The country “has the highest traffic prices in the world, due to tight government controls on the number of cars. It is also one of the most expensive cities in terms of clothing, alcohol, and tobacco, thanks to its success as a destination. top spot for business investment,” the report said. .
The city shared second place with Paris last year, says Dutt, so it’s “a lot like where it’s always been”.
Japan and Korea fall
Cities in countries whose currencies have tumbled this year are among those that have fallen in the rankings.
EIU data shows that Japan’s Osaka is the 43rd most expensive city to live in, down sharply from the 10th place in 2021. South Korea’s Busan has dropped 25 places from last year and is currently ranked No. 106.
“Japan and South Korea also saw devaluation of their local currencies, while local currency inflation in these countries was quite weak; this pushed the Tokyo and Seoul indexes lower against New Zealand. York,” the report said.
Japan’s Osaka is the 43rd most expensive city to live in, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit.
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“The Bank of Japan has a view that they won’t artificially inflate the currency and they will let it slide so prices go up. That’s one of the reasons why Osaka and Tokyo have really slowed down. [in their rankings]”, Dutt said.
Although South Korea has made moves to strengthen the won, “investors are always calling for safer currencies at this time, and the currency has slipped because of the level of confidence,” he said. she added.
The Biggest Jump: Russian Cities
The cities of Moscow and St. Russia’s Petersburg rose 88 and 70 places, respectively – the two cities with the biggest jumps, the survey found. Moscow is currently in 36th place and St. Petersburg in 73rd place.
“Capital controls, import restrictions and conversion of European gas payments to rubles are supporting the value of the local currency,” the EIU said.
Additionally, Western sanctions on Russia have led to “extremely high” inflation there, Dutt said.
Inflation Outlook in 2023
Fortunately, inflation is likely to start to ease soon, the EIU said.
The company forecasts that global inflation will fall from an average of 9.4% this year to 6.5% in 2023.
“We’ve taken action to make sure that inflation is contained. So next year we’ll start to see the impact of that so prices will be lower,” Dutt said. “Much lower than this, but how much lower is the question. We certainly expect this level of inflation to ease in 2023.”
top 10
Here are the world’s most expensive cities to live in, according to EIU’s 2022 Global Cost of Living survey.
1. CHILDREN — Singapore
1. GAME — New York
3. Tel Aviv
4. TIE — Hong Kong
4. FIRE — Los Angeles
6. Zurich
7. Geneva
8. San Francisco
9. Paris
10. DRAW — Copenhagen
10. FIRE — Sydney
