Most Expensive City in the World 2014: Why Is Singapore Living So Expensive? Beats Paris, Tokyo, & Sydney

By Desiree Salas (staff@latinospost.com) | First Posted: Mar 05, 2014 01:37 AM EST

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Every six months, the Economist Intelligent Unit publishes the results of its Worldwide Cost of Living survey. This tool "ranks 131 global cities, credits currency appreciation, solid price inflation and high costs of living," CNN noted. This year, Singapore took the number one spot for the World's Most Expensive City.

So, what is it about Singapore that made it take the top spot among all the countries in the world?

"Car costs have very high related certificate of entitlement fees attached to them, which makes Singapore significantly more expensive than any other location when it comes to running a car," the report explained.

"As a result, transport costs in Singapore are almost three times higher than in New York. In addition, as a city-state with very few natural resources to speak of, Singapore is reliant on other countries for energy and water supplies, making it the third most expensive destination for utility costs."

That explains it.

Aside from the utility and high auto ownership costs, a strong currency also helped propel the Lion City to the top spot in EIU's latest report. The fact that Singapore "is also the priciest place in the world to buy clothes" cements this country's pricey reputation even further.

Tokyo, which was last year's winner, slipped down to 6^th place due to weaker currency. It shares its spot with Melbourne, Australia and Geneva, Switzerland in a triple tie.

Paris took second place, while Oslo, Norway settled for third. Zurich, Switzerland and Sydney took the 4^th and 5^th spots respectively.

Asia also has the distinction of being home to the world's cheapest city, Mumbai, India.

"Although India has been tipped for future growth, much of this is driven by its large population and the untapped potential within the economy," the report explained.

The low wages due to "income inequality" drove down spending and helped keep per capita spending low, the results also pointed out. This, in combination with cheap and abundant supply of goods, drove down prices.