While Manila ranks 78th in the world in terms of the most expensive cities for foreign workers, the cost of living eased in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, according to the annual Cost of Living survey by global consultancy Mercer.
In the list, Dubai ranked 42nd, down from 23rd place last year, while Abu Dhabi fell from 39th place to 56th during the period on the Mercer’s list.
The survey helps in determining the cost of packages for employees on international assignments, which depend on factors such as currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services and accommodation expenses.
“It is good news for overseas workers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, where the cost of living has fallen due to the diversification of the UAE economy, which softened the blow of low oil prices on gross domestic product,” said Mercer.
The ranking of Saudi Arabian cities — Riyadh and Jeddah — jumped marginally compared to last year.
From rank 31st position, Riyadh rose to 29th this year while Jeddah placed 94th from 104th last year.
Riyadh turned out the most expensive GCC city this year, while Doha remained the least expensive Gulf city in both 2020 (109) and 2021 (130) followed by Kuwait City (113 in 2020 and 115 in 2021), as per the latest Mercer’s survey.
Manila, meanwhile, rose two spots from the 80th spot and has now moved ahead of several first-world cities, including Hamburg, Germany (80th); Lisbon, Portugal (83rd); and Barcelona, Spain (84th) on Mercer’s list.
Manila city officials, however, have disputed the Mercer study about Metro Manila, saying that it is more about the National Capital Region and not the city itself.
The ranking of 209 cities measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items, including housing, transport and food.
