Singapore most expensive city in the world for luxury living

SINGAPORE: Yet again, Singapore has taken the top spot in a global ranking report, this time for luxury living.

Singapore has emerged as the world’s most expensive city for luxury living this year, topping the Lifestyle Index of Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer Group Ltd for the first time after coming in fifth in 2022.

Shanghai and Hong Kong are ranked second and third respectively on the 2023 index, released on Tuesday (June 20).

Taipei is another Asian city in the top 10, coming in at number 8.

“Asia reaffirms its dominance as a centre for wealth and lifestyle, as well as an essential driver of the global economy,” the report reads. “Overall, six cities in Asia rose in the rankings, while four fell; seven Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) cities fell in the ranking, with only one rising (Dubai); and in the Americas, four cities rose and one fell… Asia, which has a clean sweep of the top three, powers ahead.”

The report also notes that Asia is the most expensive continent to live on for the fourth year in a row even as inflation has been a global phenomenon, with prices for all goods and services in the index rising by 13 per cent.

The index ranks the 25 most expensive cities in the world based on an analysis of residential property, cars, business-class flights, as well as other luxuries.

Its results are from surveys conducted with high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) who have $1 million or more in bankable household assets between February and March of this year.

Widely perceived to be a safe haven due to economic and political stability, as well as ease of doing business and low tax rates, Singapore has been attractive to both HNWIs and ultra high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) for a number of years now.

“High living standards and ballooning demands on local infrastructure mean life here does not come cheap. Residential property is in extremely high demand, and punitively taxed cars and essential health insurance are 133 per cent and 109 per cent more expensive than the global average respectively,” the report adds.

/TISG

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