Johannesburg is one of the least expensive cities for expatriates, according to the 2008 Mercer Cost of Living Survey. The City of Gold was ranked 140th out of the 143 countries surveyed.
Conducted by Mercer, an international consulting group, the survey covers cities across the globe and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
The findings are used to help multinational companies determine compensation allowances for their expatriate employees.
The top ranking cities in this year's list were Moscow, Tokyo and London.
According to the survey, the average cost of renting a luxury two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in Johannesburg was £533.79 a month, while in Moscow it was £2292,68 and London £2500.
A cup of coffee cost an average £1, 20 in Johannesburg compared with £2.57 in Tokyo and £5.19 in Moscow while a fast food burger meal cost £1.46 in Johannesburg and £3.89 in London.
Yvonne Traber, research manager at Mercer, believes that the current global economic conditions have influenced this year’s ranking.
"Current market conditions have led to the further weakening of the US dollar which, coupled with the strengthening of the Euro and many other currencies, has caused significant changes in this year's rankings,” she said.
The survey showed that South Africa has infact become more affordable to expatriates in the past year, having ranked 136th in the 2007 survey.
Most African cities moved down the ranking in 2008 with the exception of Lagos in Nigeria, which jumped seven places to 30.
European and Asian cities dominate this year’s top 10 while Asunción in Paraguay remains the least expensive city for expatriates for the sixth year running.
For more information visit Mercer .
