Asia dominates list of most expensive cities for expats: Mercer report

A cost-of-living report by Mercer shows that Hong Kong is the world’s most expensive city for expatriates. The consultancy firm uses New York as the base city for all comparisons and measures currency against the dollar, ranking 209 cities across five continents, measuring the cost of more than 200 items in each location including housing, transportation, food and clothing. The list is dominated by Asia, with Tokyo in second place, Singapore fourth, Seoul fifth, Shanghai seventh and Beijing in ninth place. The dominant reason for Asia topping the list is currency fluctuation, with China’s economic growth have pushed yuan as an international currency.