Dhaka most expensive city in South Asia for expats: survey

[BDforever]

Dhaka ranked as the most expensive city for expatriates in South Asia in a survey conducted by an American human resource consultancy firm.

The capital came in at 117 of Mercer's 2014 Cost of Living Rankings, up 37 spots from last year owing to a large increase in accommodation cost and a stronger local currency.
Not only did Dhaka rank above other major cities in South Asia, it also came ahead of a host of other prominent Asian metropolises such as Jakarta (119), Manila (125), Hanoi (131) and Ho Chi Minh City (135).
Mumbai is India's most expensive city, coming in at 140, followed by New Delhi at 157, Chennai 185 and Bangalore 196. Kolkata came in at 205, making it one of the least expensive cities in the world.
Published on July 10, the survey compared the cost of living for expatriates in 211 cities worldwide to New York, the base city.
It measured the comparative cost of more than 200 goods and services in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment, making it one of the most comprehensive and authoritative assessments.
Angola's capital Luanda came on top for the second year in a row, followed by N'Djamena, Chad's capital.
Pakistan's Karachi occupied the last spot, making it the world's least expensive city for expatriates for the second consecutive year. The survey found that the southern Pakistani city is more then three times cheaper than Luanda.
Rankings in many regions were affected by recent world events, including economic and political upheavals, which resulted in currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and volatility in accommodation prices, according to Ed Hannibal, partner and global leader for Mercer's Mobility practice.
While Luanda and N'Djamena are relatively inexpensive cities, they are quite costly for expatriates since imported goods come at a premium, he said.

Furthermore, finding secure living accommodation that meet the standards of expatriates can be challenging and quite costly as well. “This is generally why some African cities rank high in our survey.”
European and Asian cities also rank among the expensive cities, with Hong Kong coming in at third and Singapore fourth. Zurich jumped three places to rank fifth, followed by Geneva in sixth. Tokyo dropped four spots to rank seventh.
Other cities appearing in the top 10 of Mercer's costliest cities for expatriates are Bern, Moscow and Shanghai. The survey is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees.
While multinationals continue to recognise the importance of having a global workforce and corporate assignments remain prevalent, they must be able to monitor and balance the cost of their expatriate programmes, Hannibal said.
Employers need to evaluate the impact of currency fluctuations, inflation, and political instability when sending employees on overseas assignments while ensuring they retain talented employees by offering competitive compensation packages, he added.
Headquartered in New York, Mercer is one of the largest consulting firms in the world, operating internationally in more than 140 countries.

source: Dhaka most expensive city in South Asia for expats: survey

 

[Established_1965]

That's bad for Bangladesh :-/

 

[BDforever]

That's bad for Bangladesh :-/

 

[Yogijaat]

now we know the reason why BD's are pole vaulting into india

 

[EasyNow]

It's absolutely true. A one week stay in Dhaka will easily cost over £1000.

Food is very expensive too, I was shocked to see that people in Dhaka are paying more than standard English prices for equivalent items - and that too of very poor quality.

 

[extra terrestrial]

Probably because the five star hotels in Dhaka have the highest rates in South Asia, especially the international chain hotels.

 

[greatone]

Graphic says higher score means higher cost of living... then how is Dhaka most expensive ?

 

[BDforever]

Graphic says higher score means higher cost of living... then how is Dhaka most expensive ?

typo lol it is opposite

 

[SledgeHammer]

Fine, I am dropping my plans to invade Dhaka.

@BDforever

 

[Established_1965]

It's absolutely true. A one week stay in Dhaka will easily cost over £1000.

Food is very expensive too, I was shocked to see that people in Dhaka are paying more than standard English prices for equivalent items - and that too of very poor quality.

You can be happy that its not expensive compared to Singapore and Tokyo. We are paying in millions for our cars and house.

 

[Mercenary]

Why are things so expensive in Dhaka?

 

[Musalman]

Being a die hard lahoria, my Dad always tell me the stories of Karachi where he lived in 1963. Aba loves Karachi and to my lahori despair calls it the best city of Pakistan for every one , richer than the rich and poorer than the poor.

 

[Gibbs]

More glaring is how Bombay and New Delhi have gone down drastically over a year.. And Dhaka getting more expensive.. Any reasons ??

 

[Bong]

More glaring is how Bombay and New Delhi have gone down drastically over a year.. And Dhaka getting more expensive.. Any reasons ??

Influx of huge population.

 

[AbidM]

NEWSROOM

• HOME
• Newsroom
• 2014 Cost of Living Survey Rankings

2014 Cost of Living Rankings

• 10 July 2014
• US, New York

African, European, and Asian cities most expensive for expatriates due to currency fluctuations and the impact of inflation on goods and services, finds Mercer survey

Two African cities top the list of most expensive cities for expatriates according to Mercer’s 2014 Cost of Living Survey. Although not typically recognized as wealthy cities compared to others, Luanda in Angola is the world’s most expensive city for the second year in a row followed by N’Djamena, Chad. European and Asian cities also continue to dominate as the costliest cities with Hong Kong in third place, followed by Singapore. Zurch jumped three places to rank fifth, followed by Geneva in sixth. Tokyo dropped four spots to rank seventh.

Mercer's authoritative survey is one of the world’s most comprehensive, and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees. New York is used as the base city, and all cities are compared against it. Currency movements are measured against the US dollar.

The survey covers 211 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, and entertainment.

“Rankings in many regions were affected by recent world events, including economic and political upheavals, which resulted in currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and volatility in accommodation prices,” said Ed Hannibal, Partner and Global Leader for Mercer’s Mobility practice. While Luanda and N’Djamena are relatively inexpensive cities, they are quite costly for expatriates since imported goods come at a premium. In addition, finding secure living accommodations that meet the standards of expatriates can be challenging and quite costly as well. This is generally why some African cities rank high in our survey."

Other cities appearing in the top 10 of Mercer’s costliest cities for expatriates are Bern, Moscow, and Shanghai. Karachi, ranked 211, is the world’s least expensive city for expatriates, and the survey found that Luanda is more than three times as costly as Karachi.

According to Mr. Hannibal, “While multinationals continue to recognize the importance of having a global workforce and corporate assignments remain prevalent, they must be able to monitor and balance the cost of their expatriate programs. Employers need to evaluate the impact of currency fluctuations, inflation, and political instability when sending employees on overseas assignments while ensuring they retain talented employees by offering competitive compensation packages.”

Currency fluctuations and the impact of inflation on goods and services have influenced the cost of expatriate programs as well as the city rankings.

Nathalie Constantin-Métral, Principal at Mercer with responsibility for compiling the survey ranking, said, “Interestingly, several cities jumped up the list this year following large increases in both accommodation cost and demand, coupled with strong local currencies. Dhaka and Nairobi (both 117) and Dubai (67) soared thirty seven, thirty and twenty-three spots, respectively.”