World’s most expensive cities
By Anthony Longo 18 06 2007
If your boss wants to transfer you to Moscow this year, he’d better offer you a fair sum to do so - or even a downright handsome one depending on where you live now. That’s because Moscow has just been designated the world’s most expensive city for the second year in a row by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.Using the cost of living in New York as a base, Mercer determined Moscow is 34.4 percent more expensive after taking into account the cost of housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
“The appreciation of the ruble against the U.S. dollar, combined with ever-increasing accommodation charges, has driven up costs for expatriates in Moscow,” Mercer research manager Nathalie Constantin-Metral said in a statement.
A luxury two-bedroom in Moscow now rents for $4,000 a month; a CD costs $24.83, and an international newspaper, $6.30, according to Mercer. By comparison, a fast food meal with a burger is a steal at $4.80.
London takes the No. 2 spot, up from No. 5 a year ago, thanks to higher rents and a stronger British pound relative to the dollar. Mercer estimates London is 26 percent more expensive than Gotham these days.
Following closely on London’s heels are Seoul and Tokyo — Nos. 3 and 4, respectively — both of which are 22 percent more expensive than New York, while No. 5 Hong Kong is 19 percent more costly. Continued…
Source: CNN Money
| 1. Moscow |
| 3. Seoul |
| 5. Hong Kong |
| 7. Geneva |
| 9. Zurich |
| 11. Milan |
| 13. Paris |
| 15. New York City |
| 17. Tel Aviv |
| 19. Vienna |
Ironically enough, my boss did want me to move to Moscow about 10 years ago. I chose to retire from the glamorous life of management consulting instead, though I did make a number of trips there for business. After spending a few years living in the region (former Soviet Union) my sense of how much things should cost became VERY warped.
BTW, nobody in Moscow actually pays that much for a CD. Bootleg copies are so readily available you would think they were legal. First release movies were also out on DVD moments after (if not before) they premiered in US theaters. Piracy was rampant.