Le most expensive cities in the world are confirmed, and by far and in order, New York, Zurich and Geneva, followed by Oslo and London. The first Asian is Hong Kong, the first North American is Chicago, the oceanic scepter goes to Sydney and the Italian one to Milan, which is positioned in the top-15 ahead of Seoul and Paris. The first South American is Buenos Aires, 29th just behind Rome.
To reveal it is one study by the Swiss bank UBS, which, however, in addition to the prices, also analyzed the purchasing power of the main cities, from which it emerges that the two Swiss cities will be almost as expensive as New York, but with a much more widespread well-being among its citizens. First of all because Zurich and Geneva have significantly higher net wages: if the Big Apple is set as a parameter at 100 points, the city of German-speaking Switzerland totals 141.7 and the French-speaking one 135.1, while Milan even ends up behind Rome (53.1 to 54.2). Thus, the two Swiss cities command the ranking of "purchasing power" ahead of Luxembourg, while the city of Wall Street is overtaken by its compatriots Miami, Los Angeles and Chicago, and even by the Cypriot Nicosia. In this case, the gap between Rome and Milan widens in favor of the capital: the first 29th, the second 38th.
To make the idea better, UBS focused the study on comparison between the purchasing power of four symbolic consumer goods: a 6GB iPhone 16, a Big Mac from Mc Donald's, 1 kg of bread and 1 kg of rice. How many hours of work does it cost each person to purchase one of these goods? The calculation of the two Italians appears only in that of the most famous hamburger in the world, with an acceptable response: to bite into it in Rome or Milan it is enough to work for 18 minutes (slightly more than the time needed to eat it all...), compared to 9 minutes enough in Hong Kong, 11 in Zurich, 15 in Paris, 22 in Lisbon, 42 in Beijing, up to 173 (almost 3 hours) in Kenyan Nairobi, last in the standings.
A particularly interesting parameter is that ofiPhone 6, which Apple's policy requires at the same price (in euros or dollars) all over the world: a citizen of Zurich gets hold of the hi-tech jewel with not even a day's work, 20,6 hours to be precise. In New York it takes 24 hours round while almost double it is necessary in Tokyo, London and Paris, all three above 40 hours. In Rio de Janeiro it is already starting to be more demanding: 140 hours (almost 6 days); while in Beijing, China, where iPhones are physically manufactured, it takes 9 days. In Nairobi, needless to say, the necessary hours are 468: almost 20 days of work.
It's better (and God forbid) for basic necessities such as 1 kg of bread, even if in Kenya it still takes three quarters of an hour of effort: nothing to do with the 5 minutes in Zurich (where the same amount of rice can be awarded in the same time), the 6 in London, the 10 Paris. However, the African city is not the Cinderella of this ranking: in Beijing, capital of the second largest economy in the world, it is necessary to toil at least 40 minutes for 1 kg of bread, and almost the same time for 1 kg of rice. On the rice podium, behind Zurich, Paris and surprisingly Rio de Janeiro finish, tied with just 9 minutes.
Globally, rice is still the cheapest commodity: taking the average of all the cities examined, a quantity of 1 kg requires 18 minutes of work, less than the 19 needed for the same amount of bread, the 27 for a Big Mac and the 119 hours it takes to buy the coolest smartphone. Then there is a fact that makes you smile: in Switzerland you will also earn good money, but a leap from coiffeur costs an average of 80 euros for women and 47 for men: exactly ten times as much as in Beijing.
