Oslo, London become world's most expensive cities: report

Oslo and London are the world's most expensive cities, followed by Copenhagen and Zurich, according to a new report released on Wednesday.

The Prices and Earnings report, compiled by Switzerland's largest bank UBS, compares the price of a basket of 122 domestic goods and services in 71 cities on all continents.

Goods include food, drink, clothing, rent and heating bills, while services encompass medication, haircuts and a trip to the cinema.

The report shows that the world's top expensive cities are mostly in Europe, while the basket of goods and services costs the least in Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Delhi and Buenos Aires.

Tokyo and New York take the fifth and seventh places respectively in the list of 71 cities.

Compared to the last UBS Prices and Earnings study released in 2003, New York and Chicago have dropped in the rankings, mostly due to the weaker U.S. dollar.

In the comparison of purchasing power, the Swiss cities of Zurich and Geneva remain at the top, followed by Dublin, Los Angeles and Luxembourg.

People in Asia work the longest hours -- almost 50 days more per year than Western Europeans. Asian workers at least partially compensate for low purchasing power through longer working hours, according to the report.

Source: Xinhua