Contact:
Scott Sutton
Director of Marketing
AIRINC

press@air-inc.com
www.air-inc.com

         FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    

 

LUANDA TOPS AIRINC’S LIST OF THE WORLD’S
MOST EXPENSIVE CITIES FOR EXPATRIATES

Cambridge, MA (USA)—September 29, 2009—Luanda, Angola, is now the most expensive city in the world for expatriate staff, according to research conducted by AIRINC, a global cost-of-living consultancy headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  Moscow, the most expensive city during the previous two years, has fallen to fourth in this year’s rankings.

AIRINC’s methodology compares the relative cost in over 400 cities of a market basket of 300 goods and services, including rent and utilities, commonly purchased by expatriates.

This year’s changes were driven in large part by two factors: significant fluctuations in world currencies relative to the U.S. Dollar and currencies pegged to it; and sagging rental markets in Asia and the Far East, which were hard hit by this year’s financial and housing crises.  In combination, these factors made locations in developing countries more affordable to Western expatriate staff than they had been in previous years.

The top 100 most expensive cities for expatriates are as follows:


 

2009 Rank

Location

Region

2008 Rank

Rank Change

1

Luanda, Angola

MEA

4

3

2

Tokyo, Japan

FAR

2

0

3

Osaka, Japan

FAR

5

2

4

Moscow, Russia

EUR

1

-3

5

Hong Kong

FAR

3

-2

6

Geneva, Switzerland

EUR

8

2

7

Zurich, Switzerland

EUR

11

4

8

Seoul, Korea

FAR

6

-2

9

Mumbai, India

FAR

7

-2

10

Paris, France

EUR

12

2

11

Copenhagen, Denmark

EUR

13

2

12

Lagos, Nigeria

MEA

21

9

13

Singapore

FAR

9

-4

14

St. Petersburg, Russia

EUR

10

-4

15

Rome, Italy

EUR

16

1

16

Amsterdam, Netherlands

EUR

15

-1

17

Istanbul, Turkey

EUR

20

3

18

Madrid, Spain

EUR

18

0

19

Oslo, Norway

EUR

14

-5

20

Vienna, Austria

EUR

26

6

21

London, U.K.

EUR

17

-4

22

Milan, Italy

EUR

22

0

23

Frankfurt, Germany

EUR

30

7

24

Shanghai, China

FAR

25

1

25

Algiers, Algeria

MEA

28

3

26

Berlin, Germany

EUR

33

7

27

Sao Paulo, Brazil

LAM

19

-8

28

Helsinki, Finland

EUR

27

-1

29

Dakar, Senegal

MEA

49

20

30

Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

MEA

51

21

31

Dubai, U.A.E.

MEA

36

5

32

Almaty, Kazakhstan

EUR

23

-9

33

Munich, Germany

EUR

32

-1

34

Beijing, China

FAR

53

19

35

Luxembourg

EUR

44

9

36

Caracas, Venezuela

LAM

40

4

37

Dusseldorf, Germany

EUR

39

2

38

Barcelona, Spain

EUR

31

-7

39

New York NY, U.S.A.

NAM

55

16

40

Athens, Greece

EUR

41

1

41

Sydney, Australia

FAR

24

-17

42

Bratislava, Slovak Republic

EUR

48

6

43

Taipei, Taiwan

FAR

45

2

44

Dublin, Ireland

EUR

29

-15

45

Sofia, Bulgaria

EUR

52

7

46

Douala, Cameroon

MEA

56

10

47

Bogota, Colombia

LAM

37

-10

48

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

LAM

42

-6

49

San Francisco CA, U.S.A.

NAM

65

16

50

Los Angeles CA, U.S.A.

NAM

62

12

51

Tel Aviv, Israel

EUR

58

7

52

Bucharest, Romania

EUR

35

-17

53

Abidjan, Ivory Coast

MEA

59

6

54

Budapest, Hungary

EUR

38

-16

55

Brussels, Belgium

EUR

54

-1

56

Casablanca, Morocco

MEA

61

5

57

Jakarta, Indonesia

FAR

68

11

58

Beirut, Lebanon

MEA

76

18

59

New Delhi, India

FAR

50

-9

60

Kuwait City, Kuwait

MEA

60

0

61

Riga, Latvia

EUR

57

-4

62

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

FAR

67

5

63

Bangkok, Thailand

FAR

64

1

64

Lisbon, Portugal

EUR

63

-1

65

Tianjin, China

FAR

75

10

66

Prague, Czech Republic

EUR

43

-23

67

Warsaw, Poland

EUR

34

-33

68

Stockholm, Sweden

EUR

47

-21

69

Lima, Peru

LAM

69

0

70

Manila, Philippines

FAR

70

0

71

Cairo, Egypt

MEA

85

14

72

Tehran, Iran

MEA

80

8

73

Vilnius, Lithuania

EUR

72

-1

74

Kiev, Ukraine

EUR

46

-28

75

Toronto ON, Canada

NAM

71

-4

76

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

MEA

84

8

77

Tallinn, Estonia

EUR

73

-4

78

Dalian, China

FAR

77

-1

79

Manama, Bahrain

MEA

87

8

80

Mexico City, Mexico

LAM

66

-14

81

Panama City, Panama

LAM

94

13

82

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

MEA

91

9

83

Santiago, Chile

LAM

78

-5

84

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

MEA

88

4

85

Chengdu, China

FAR

79

-6

86

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

FAR

81

-5

87

Buenos Aires, Argentina

LAM

83

-4

88

Birmingham, U.K.

EUR

74

-14

89

Houston TX, U.S.A.

NAM

92

3

90

Accra, Ghana

MEA

95

5

91

Nairobi, Kenya

MEA

86

-5

92

Montevideo, Uruguay

LAM

89

-3

93

San Jose, Costa Rica

LAM

96

3

94

Glasgow, U.K.

EUR

82

-12

95

Bangalore, India

FAR

93

-2

96

Wellington, N.Z.

FAR

90

-6

97

Johannesburg, S.A.

MEA

99

2

98

San Salvador, El Salvador

LAM

97

-1

99

La Paz, Bolivia

LAM

100

1

100

Quito, Ecuador

LAM

98

-2

Press inquiries and other requests for more information about this research should
be directed via email to Scott Sutton, Director of Marketing, at press@air-inc.com.