Living expenses of expatriate employees Hong Kong ranks sixth in the world

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Written by: Huang Yongyu

2019-12-10 18:26

Human resources management consultancy ECA International today (10th) released the latest "cost of living survey" results, Hong Kong was overtaken by Tokyo, fell to third place in Asian cities with the highest cost of living for expatriate employees, while ranking in the global cities and last year Again, ranked sixth.

Guan Lilian, regional director of Asia at ECA International, said that Hong Kong's ranking has remained roughly stable, and the reasons for being overtaken by Tokyo include the strong yen, the Tokyo Olympics next year, or increased local inflation. In addition, he pointed out that although Hong Kong faces socio-political turmoil and economic recession, it has not seen any substantial impact on the cost of living.

Human resources consultancy ECA International has published the latest "cost of living study" results for more than 480 locations worldwide. The study compares consumer goods and services commonly purchased by expatriate employees. The results show that among Asian cities, Hong Kong now ranks third among Asian cities with the highest cost of living for expatriate employees and ranks sixth among global cities.

Tokyo Olympics high local living expenses

Guan Lilian, regional director of Asia at ECA International, said that Hong Kong ’s ranking has remained stable this year. Although Hong Kong is still facing continued socio-political turmoil and an economic recession, it has not seen any substantial impact on local living costs. Speaking of why Tokyo was surpassed this year, he explained that the Japanese yen will be strong in 2019. In addition, Japan ’s recent increase in consumption tax is expected to further increase prices. It is believed that the Tokyo Olympics next year may further increase inflation. Therefore, towards 2020, Tokyo is expected to remain above Hong Kong.

Human resources consultants released the latest "cost of living study" results, Hong Kong's expatriate employees have the sixth most expensive living expenses in the world. (Profile picture)

Aiming at the Asian region, the study also found that the cost of living ranking of Thai cities increased by one or two. Among them, Bangkok rose 43 places to 47, and for the first time entered the top 50 rankings. Guan Lilian said that Bangkok has always been popular with vacationers and expatriates because of its low price and good quality. However, this time the ranking has risen significantly, and the increase is the highest in Asian cities. One of the important reasons is the appreciation of the Thai baht. In the past two years, Bangkok and Chiang Mai have risen by 75 and 56 places, respectively.

In the global rankings, Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan in Central Asia, is ranked as the world's most expensive city for expatriates. Guan Lilian revealed that, except for Swiss cities, which continue to dominate the world's top ten rankings, most European cities have started to decline since last year. The continued uncertainty over Brexit has dropped London's ranking to 140th, the lowest position since the cost of living rankings began in 2005.

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