A recent survey shows that Singapore has been included in the top 10 most expensive cities in Asia for expatriates to reside. The survey, which the ECA International has conducted, is based on a cost-of-living standard for expatriates.
ECA International, a data and software solutions and employee management firm, conducts a survey twice a year to help multinational companies analyze living costs and compensation packages for expatriates.
This year, ECA’s survey has shown that Singapore went up the list from the 13th position last year to the 10th this year. Globally, Singapore went up to 72nd place from 114th last year. This is despite the Singapore dollar’s weakened state, which makes services and goods much cheaper here for foreigners.
Lee Quane, regional director of ECA Asia, explained, “Prices have not slowed down as much in Singapore as in other parts of Asia.” Thus, Singapore moved up the ranks. However, Singapore remains a more affordable place compared to Hong Kong.
The survey also indicates that Asia’s cost of living has increased relatively to the US and Europe probably because the West has experienced the hardest hit by the global financial crisis.
According to Phillip Overmyer, chief executive of the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce (SICC), “We’re seeing demand coming down, yet costs remain very high, making Singapore and some other Asian cities very expensive places to operate.”
The cost of living is still bearable in Singapore, although the steady decline of housing rents remains to be bugbear, according to Jane Fraser, 38, an advertising executive expat.
Most expensive cities in Asia: (1)Tokyo, (2)Nagoya, (3)Yokohama, (4)Kobe, (5)Beijing, (6)Shanghai, (7)Hong Kong, (8)Shenzhen, (9)Guangzhou, and (10)Singapore.