A new survey has revealed that Singapore is becoming more expensive for expats to live in, and could continue to be so due to the strength of the Singapore dollar and general inflation.
The survey, conducted by ECA International, has shown that Singapore has made a remarkable leap up the list for expensive expat cities, climbing up to 42nd place from last year's ranking of 79. With a growing currency, ECA speculates that this could go even higher next year.
Lee Quane, ECA regional director said: “The Singapore dollar has strengthened against the U.S. dollar over the past six months, and will be a big factor in contributing to Singapore's cost of living. If it remains strong, the cost of bringing expats here will get more expensive — especially compared with Singapore's natural competitor, Hong Kong.”
However , despite the rising costs ECA International stress that Singapore is still one of the top destinations for foreign workers, and that along with living costs, expat wages are also increasing. According to the ECA research expat wages are now just 2 percent lower than in Hong Kong, compared to 15 percent three years ago.