Amid coronavirus pandemic Hong Kong remains most expensive city in the world, Paris and Zurich join first place according to Worldwide Cost of Living’s annual report
The WCOL annual report from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) revealed last week that Singapore and Osaka, which were both joint-first in 2019, have tumbled down the rankings to fourth and fifth place respectively. Zurich and Paris jumped up four places, overtaking Singapore and Osaka, to join Hong Kong at number one.
The WCOL index has examined the cost of living in 133 cities worldwide since the start of the year amid the coronavirus pandemic.
| City | Rank | Rank Movement | WCOL Index |
| Zurich | 1 | 4 | 103 |
| Paris | 1 | 4 | 103 |
| Hong Kong | 1 | 0 | 103 |
| Singapore | 4 | -3 | 102 |
| Tel Aviv | 5 | 2 | 101 |
| Osaka | 5 | -4 | 101 |
| Geneva | 7 | 3 | 100 |
| New York | 7 | -3 | 100 |
| Copenhagen | 9 | 2 | 96 |
| Los Angeles | 9 | -1 | 96 |
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Upasana Dutt, the head of WCOL, said that 2020 has clearly been “more unusual” than previous years.
“The coronavirus pandemic has impacted spending habits all over the world, with the prices of essential goods proving more resilient than those deemed non-essential,” Dutt said.
The WCOL report said prices in Singapore dropped because of so many foreign workers leaving the city amid the coronavirus pandemic, triggering low demand and deflation.
“In the past few years Singapore had maintained its position at the top of the table. That has, of course, changed this year,” Dutt said.
Osaka also experienced a similar trend as consumer prices stagnated after the Japanese government subsidised costs of amenities such as public transport, the report said.
The largest price gains in US dollars, meanwhile, were in Iran’s capital Tehran, which climbed nearly 30 places from positions 106 to 79. According to the report, this is down to US sanctions stopping some imports, impacting the supply of goods.
Brazilian cities including São Paulo saw the biggest price drops, which reflects the rising poverty levels and weak currencies, the report showed. They sit equal at 119th place on the index.
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Cities across the Americas, Africa and eastern Europe have become cheaper since 2019, while western European cities have become pricier. Four out of the 10 most expensive cities on the index are located in western Europe, with both Paris and Zurich taking joint first place.
“Zurich has additionally seen some trends around higher rentals,” said Dutt. Even routine medical check-ups have risen in dollar terms in Paris and Zurich, she added.
The report said this partly shows the strength in European currencies against the US dollar.
Currencies were at their weakest in the Americas and strongest in western Europe by September 2020, according to the report.
As well as local currency exchange-rate movement against the dollar causing many of the changes, the report indicated that a drop in disposable income and lifestyle changes, such as essential shopping, were also key players.
In addition, the report claims government responses to the coronavirus altered the price changes. Certain governments raised taxes to offset revenue shortfalls. Others, such as Argentina, introduced price controls on products due to the high demand from panic buying.
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When asked if, after the pandemic, the list will revert to how it was before, Dutt said it depends on multiple aspects, including how the supply chain issues are sorted. “Prices depend a lot on inflation and exchange rates, which rely to a large extent on central bank policies,” she added.
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This article originally appeared on Business Insider.
The Economist Intelligence Unit’s WCOL index has surveyed the cost of living in 133 cities across the globe, and the results are in – Osaka and Singapore, the joint-firsts of 2019, have officially been overtaken