Living in Australia Gets Cheaper
March 13th, 2009 | Published in Economy
Although little has changed for anyone who has already moved their funds to Australia, a weakened Australian dollar means the country now offers newcomers better value than it did just a few months ago, relative to other countries.
The Economist Intelligence Unit says the relative cost of living depends on two factors – local prices and exchange rates. The global economic crisis has seen some currencies, such as the US dollar and the Japanese yen strengthen, while others such as the pound sterling and the Australian dollar have weakened.
Sydney, which was the 17th most expensive most city in the list last year has moved to 35th place and Melbourne has dropped from 24th to 39th place.
Brisbane and Perth have moved from 35th equal to 57th equal while Adelaide has fallen from 48th to 72nd.
The most dramatic example of a weakening currency has been observed in Iceland, whose collapsed banks have brought the country’s economy to its knees. Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik, was the fifth most expensive city last year. Now it has fallen to 67th place.
A weaker pound sterling has lowered the relative cost of living in Britain with the result that London has dropped from eighth to 27th most expensive city.
Jon Copestake, editor of the report, comments: “Two factors drive the relative cost of living: local prices and exchange rates. Normally our ranking of cities by cost of living is relatively stable, but in the current global climate changes in exchange rates have significantly altered our assessment of the most and least expensive cities.”
Note: The Worldwide Cost of Living survey compares the cost of living in 140 cities worldwide. In each city field researchers gather and return a range of prices for over 160 items, from a loaf of bread to a luxury car.
Relative Cost of Living In Selected Cities:
| Position | Location |
| 1. | Tokyo, Japan |
| 4. | Copenhagen, Denmark |
| 9. | Geneva, Switzerland |
| 10. | Singapore |
| 13. | Dublin, Ireland |
| 23. | Chicago, USA |
| 27. | London, UK |
| 35. | Sydney, Australia |
| 39. | Melbourne, Australia |
| 46. | Vancouver, Canada |
| 53. | Dubai, UAE |
| 57. = | Brisbane, Australia |
| 57. = | Perth, Australia |
| 57. = | Toronto, Canada |
| 70. | Manchester, UK |
| 72. | Adelaide, Australia |
| 78. | Auckland, New Zealand |
| 121. | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| 126. | Manila, Philippines |
| 129. | New Dehli, India |