Asian cities top list of costliest places to live
The cost of living has been increasing for consumers across the world over the past 12 months, as the prices for goods and services increased by 13 % on average in local currencies and by 6 % if measured in US dollars, according to the report released by wealth management group Julius Baer on Tuesday.
The rising cost of living is largely due to prolonged high inflation worldwide amid surging prices of raw materials, energy, fuel and staffing, said Julius Baer experts.
For the fourth year in a row, Asia remains the costliest region to live in. In terms of global city ranking, Singapore this year became the most expensive city to live comfortably, while it ranked fifth a year ago, according to Julius Baer.
Shanghai, which topped the ranking in 2022, came second this year. Hong Kong came third in the latest edition of the report, while it ranked fourth one year earlier.
Residential property is in extremely high demand in Singapore, and punitively taxed cars and essential health insurance are priced 133 % and 109 % higher than the global average respectively.
“Long considered liveable, stable and cosmopolitan, Singapore is now vying to become a leading global centre for the wealthy. Determined efforts in financial regulation and government policy to attract high net worth individuals are clearly paying off with a doubling of family offices by the end of 2022 compared to the previous year,” said Mark Matthews, head of research for Julius Baer Asia Pacific.
Although Shanghai remains an expensive city, average prices in the local currency rose only 3 % over the past year. This can be partly attributed to the impact of the pandemic. However, Shanghai was the priciest city for business class flights and degustation dinners last year, according to the report.
Prices of luxury consumables have also gone up. Wine prices reported the biggest year-on-year increase of 17.23 % over the past 12 months, followed by whiskey (16.15 %) and hotel suites (15.25 %). This was mainly due to the dramatic increase in consumer demand over the past few months.
Price increases in premium goods and services underpin the fact that wealthy consumers need to achieve a high single-digit investment return denominated in stable currencies to preserve their wealth, said Christian Gattiker, head of research for Julius Baer.
Looking at the financial habits of high-net-worth individuals globally, people are investing more, which, as Julius Baer experts explained, is perhaps a reflection of post-pandemic uncertainty. Again, Asia-Pacific is in a leading position, with 73 % of the respondents in this region directing more of their capital to investments.
Shi Jing
China Daily
Asia News Network
Here is Julius Baer's ranking of the 10 most expensive cities for "living well":
01. Singapore
02. Shanghai
03. Hong Kong
04. London
05. New York
06. Monaco
07. Dubai
08. Taipei
09. Sao Paulo
10. Miami
