Dublin is now the 47th most expensive in the world for expatriates to live in
By Echo Reporter
DUBLINs the 47th most expensive city in the world for expatriates to live and work in, according to Mercer’s 22nd annual Cost of Living Survey.
Dublin moves up the rankings for a third year running from 49th to 47th position and joins Paris (44) and Milan (50) as the only Eurozone cities in the top 50. Other high ranking European cities include Zurich (3), Geneva (8), Bern (13) and London (17).
Commenting on the results, Noel O’Connor, Principal at Mercer Ireland noted: “Dublin has increased its ranking in Mercer’s annual cost of living survey for expatriates for the third year running.
“As in 2015 the survey identifies cost pressures on expatriate rental accommodation as a key factor in maintaining Dublin’s high ranking relative to other Eurozone cities.
As the economy has improved, greater foreign direct investment has put increased pressure on the availability of rental accommodation for expatriates in Dublin.”
Hong Kong tops the survey’s list, pushing Luanda, Angola to second position. Zurich and Singapore remain in third and fourth positions, respectively, whereas Tokyo is in fifth, up six places from last year.
Kinshasa, ranked sixth, appears for the first time in the top 10, moving up from thirteenth place.
Other cities appearing in the top 10 of Mercer’s costliest cities for expatriates are Shanghai (7), Geneva (8), N’Djamena (9), and Beijing (10).
The world’s least expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s survey, are Windhoek (209), Cape Town (208), and Bishkek (207).
Despite volatile global markets and growing security issues, organisations continue to leverage global expansion strategies to remain competitive and to grow.
Yet, few organisations are prepared for the challenges world events have on their business, including the impact on cost of expatriate packages.
Mercer’s 22nd annual Cost of Living Survey finds that factors including currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and instability of accommodation prices, contribute to the cost of expatriate packages for employees on international assignments.
Mr. O’Connor explained: “Global mobility is a significant undertaking for multinational companies to ensure they can facilitate the moves they need to drive business results by offering fair and competitive compensation packages. A real understanding of the issues and cost involved is essential.”
Mercer’s widely recognized survey is one of the world’s most comprehensive, and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation strategies for their expatriate employees.
New York City is used as the base city for all comparisons and currency movements are measured against the US dollar.
This year’s ranking includes 209 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, and entertainment.
