The cheapest countries in the world for drugs, booze and cigarettes
Vice is cheapest in Luxembourg, where the cost comes in at less than 10 per cent of the US$2,071 average weekly wage, which is the highest in the world
The cost of maintaining a drugs, booze and cigarettes habit was cheaper in Hong Kong and Singapore than the US last year, the annual Bloomberg Global Vice Index shows.
Americans had to fork out over US$200 more for a basket of so-called vice goods last year versus 2016, with only New Zealand seeing a bigger increase.
The gauge compares the share of income needed to maintain a broad weekly habit of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, amphetamines, cocaine and opioids across more than 100 countries.
Doing so eats up more than a third of the average weekly pay cheque in more than three quarters of the economies tracked, the index shows.
The gauge is purely an economic indicator, not a judgment about morality or legality. Nor does it track gambling, prostitution or other illicit activities.
Vice is cheapest in Luxembourg, where the cost comes in at less than 10 per cent of the US$2,071 average weekly wage, which is the highest in the world. The Bahamas, Switzerland, Iceland and France round out the top five for affordability.
By contrast, Ukrainians must spend 13 times their weekly salary for the same fix, making it one of the costliest places for those making local wages. Pakistan, Nepal and Burkina Faso also score near the top for higher prices.