Cost-of-living for expatriates more expensive in Mumbai than Melbourne, Frankfurt
Cost of living for expatriates in Mumbai is the highest in the country, and more expensive than its global peers like Melbourne and Frankfurt, said a survey. Mumbai is ranked at 55th spot in terms of cost of living globally, higher than cities like Melbourne (58), Frankfurt (68), Buenos Aires (76), Stockholm (89) and Atlanta (95), stated a survey by global consulting firm Mercer.
Hong Kong is the world's costliest city for expatriates
Other Indian cities featuring in the survey include Delhi (103), Chennai (144), Bengaluru (170), with Kolkata (182) being the least expensive Indian city. "While Melbourne and Buenos Aires have fallen in their rankings, Mumbai's jump in ranking is also attributable to the continued surge in prices of food, alcohol, and domestic supplies," the survey noted. Hong Kong topped the list as world's costliest city.
Factors that played a role in rising prices
Inflation among the highest in Indian cities surveyed remained at 5.57% during the survey period. This is especially true for prices of expatriate food items such as butter, meat, and poultry as well as premium farm produce, along with prices of alcohol. Costs of sporting, leisure-related activities have also played a role in rising prices, followed in part by transportation costs, including taxi fares.
93% of companies compensate through cost of living allowance: Report
The survey is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation strategies for their expatriate employees. According to Mercer's International Policies and Practices Report on India, 93% of companies do compensate through a cost of living allowance for their expatriate assignee.
New York used as base-city for all comparisons in survey
In this scenario, companies are reconsidering how frequently expatriate salaries are reviewed, Padma Ramanathan, India practice leader, global mobility, Mercer said. This year's rankings in the survey, which uses New York City as the base city for all comparisons, includes 209 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location.
