INTERNATIONAL REWARD
Hong Kong takes over as world's most expensive city
Hong Kong now finds itself in the unenviable position as the world's most expensive city, followed by Moscow, according to the latest cost-of-living survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting.
Mercer's index shows Hong Kong scoring 124.2 points, compared with New York as the base city which scores 100 points. It is three-and-a-half times costlier than Johannesburg, the least expensive city, which has an index of just 34.4 points.
Results show that the gap between the world's most and least expensive cities is narrowing. In the last year alone, the difference has fallen by nearly 15%.
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Title: Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2002, William M Mercer.
Methodology: The figures for Mercer's cost-of-living comparisons are based on a survey conducted in March 2002. The survey, which covers 144 cities, measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location. These include housing, food, clothing and household goods, together with transport and entertainment. The data is used to assist multinational companies in determining compensation allowances for their expatriate workers.
Availability: Individual reports are produced for each city surveyed, but there is no overall summary report available. Further information and copies of the reports are available from client services, Mercer Global Information Services, Geneva, tel: +41 22 869 3000.
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Mercer Human Resource Consulting (formerly William M Mercer) is a global firm that "helps organisations create business value through their people". With more than 13,000 employees in some 40 countries serving clients worldwide, the company is part of Mercer Consulting Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.For more information visit the Mercer web site on www.mercerHR.com
Posted 24 July 2002