Tokyo and Osaka Most Expensive in World

Tuesday, June 21, 2005 Posted: 02:35 PM JST

Tokyo and Osaka are the most expensive cities to live in according to research released by Mercer Human Resource Consulting. The American company ranked 144 cities using New York as the base city at 100 points. Tokyo scored no less than 134.7 points. Last year the Japanese capital also topped the list. Osaka, Japan's second largest city, moved from fourth into second place.

London ranked third, followed by Moscow and Seoul. Asuncion in Paraguay is the least expensive city in the survey. Tokyo is more than three times costlier than Asuncion. The survey puts four of the world's ten costliest cities in Asia.

The list is the world's most comprehensive cost of living survey and is used to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees. Some 200 items were used in the research, including housing, transportation, food and clothing. The agency added that Tokyo and Osaka's top position was especially due to currency appreciation.

Keywords: national_news

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