Switzerland cities top world’s most costly cities

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS. Zurich and Geneva top the list of world’s most costly cities, ahead of New York, according to a study by UBS Group AG.

As “Armenpress” reports, referring to “Bloomberg”, it costs a Zurich family of three more than $3,600 a month to live, based on a basket of 122 goods and services that doesn’t include rent, the report shows.Geneva comes second at $3,500 per month, followed by New York on $3,340.

When rent is included, the U.S. city jumps to first place as a two-bedroom unfurnished apartment averages $4,320 a month compared with $2,390 in Zurich. That compares with living costs of $1,273 for a family in Kiev, the least expensive city, where a family pays rent of about $540.

The high prices also mean that the Swiss cities are among the most expensive to visit. In Geneva, Zurich, together with New York and Tokyo, a one-night city break costs at least $1,000 for two people, excluding transportation, according to UBS. That’s almost four times the cost of visiting Bucharest.

The residents of Zurich need to work about 80 hours for a day of holiday, just one hour above the Bucharest level, but 27 hours more than Moscow employees. In Shanghai, it takes 293 working hours for an employee to get one day of holiday, according to the UBS study.