China’s cities cheaper to live in

Source: Xinhua | 2017-03-22

CHINESE cities are becoming cheaper to live in globally following the yuan’s depreciation against the US dollar, a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit showed yesterday.

Shanghai’s ranking fell five places but it remained the most expensive city on China’s mainland, followed by Shenzhen and Dalian. Beijing’s spot dropped the most in the past year, falling 16 places to 31st in the global ranking, the EIU’s Worldwide Cost of Living Survey revealed.

“The fall in Chinese cities down the ranking is to be expected given weakening demand growth and the decline in the value of the yuan over the last year or so,” said Jon Copestake, editor of the survey.

Singapore topped the global ranking for the fourth year running, with Hong Kong at No. 2. Asian cities made up five of the six most expensive cities globally, the survey found.

The biannual survey compared the prices of over 160 items in 140 cities around the world with the collated prices converted into the US dollar using a prevailing exchange rate. New York was used as the basis for comparison.