By BusinessWeek has their yearly article out listing the world’s most expensive cities and Seoul did not make the Top 10. However, 4 of the 10 most expensive cities can be found in Japan with Tokyo being the most expensive:
1. Tokyo Japan
The strength of the yen has brought Tokyo back to the No. 1 spot on ECA International’s ranking for the first time since 2005. In addition to the costs above, rent for a two-bedroom apartment for expats is typically more than $5,000 per month in Tokyo, according to data from EuroCost International. While visitors need more pocket money here than in any other city, the monthly consumer price index in Tokyo’s wards has actually dropped year-on-year for 14 straight months as of May 2010, based on figures from Japan’s statistics bureau. [BusinessWeek]
Click the link to see the full list, but what jumped out at me is why is Luanda, Angola so expensive?
If you are wondering Seoul jumped up 80 places from last year’s list to #20.
She hasn’t seen...
6:21 pm on June 30th, 2010 1
… what jumped out at me is why is Luanda, Angola so expensive?
I don't know for sure about this study, but often studies about the cost of living for business people take the cost for security (bodyguards, protected homes) into account.
6:24 pm on June 30th, 2010 2
#1 I agree, that's a little strange and I suspect you are right. Either that or when most people live in mud huts while we would likely expect western amenities, well, that may be a factor. My dad is working in Angola right now. Perhaps I will get a chance to ask him.
6:36 pm on June 30th, 2010 3
Luanda: crippling lack of supply of quality accomodation for relatively affluent oil industry staff, inability to commute due to infrastructure inadequacy in "suburban" areas… But of course I realize that other places in Africa must be facing similar problems, so I doubt this is the whole story…
8:11 pm on June 30th, 2010 4
Looking at the prices for Seoul makes me a little skeptical for the list as a whole.
FOOD: Lunch at a restaurant: $20
Can of beer from grocer: $2.21
One kg of rice: $6.07
One dozen eggs: $4.11
Movie ticket: $7.50
Washing machine: $1,113
Where were they buying a can of beer in a grocery store for 2700 won or almost 5,000 won for a dozen eggs? (though eggs don't come in dozens here, they come in ten packs)
How often does one pay 24,000 won for lunch? I know, business lunches are more, but when calculating the cost of living, it isn't really very accurate.
11:20 pm on June 30th, 2010 5
It's hard to tell from the article, but as in the past, they may be looking at what an executive (an expat executive) might be buying, not what a local would be buying.
Locals in Tokyo do not usually pay $18 for lunch. That's an expat exec buying a New York-style lunch somewhere, or a Japanese corporate employee's lunch being paid for by the corporation. I'll bet Seoul's results were similar.
7:05 pm on July 1st, 2010 6
#4,
Makes you wonder how they collected their data.
#5,
What are they doing buying washing machines and eggs if they never leave their hotel room?
9:36 pm on July 1st, 2010 7
i have lived in seoul for almost 20 years and laughed at when it made the most expensive list
its not expensive at all
11:55 am on July 2nd, 2010 8
#7,
The most expensive restaurant and coffee shop I've been in Korea were a blatant ripoff aimed at Japanese tourists. Twice as expensive as any other similar place frequented by Koreans and Westerners exclusively.