MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Santiago, 48th most expensive city in the world

Chile's capital ranks as the world's 48th most expensive city, according to a recent study by Swiss investment bank UBS.

Santiago ranked 57th in 2003 and the higher ranking is attributed to the nation's economic growth and the greater value of the national currency vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar.

Every third year UBS measures and compares prices on goods, services, salaries, taxes, work hours and buying power. This year, 71 cities from all over the world were part of the calculation.

To visualize the rating, consider that a Chilean had to work 52 minutes in 2003 to buy a Big Mac from McDonalds. This year, that burger equals 56 minutes of work for the average Chilean employee.

The study placed Santiago between Mexico City and Sao Paulo. In the Mexican capital it takes 82 minutes to buy a Big Mac, and in Sao Paulo it is 38 minutes. A worker in Nairobi, however, would have to work an hour and a half, while a citizen of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Miami would only have to work 13 minutes.

The most expensive city is Norway's capital, Oslo. Second is London, followed by Copenhagen. In the U.S., New York and Chicago both dropped to ranks of 7 and 14, respectively. Toronto ranked as the 16th most expensive city in the world, followed by Montreal (20), Miami (22), Hong Kong (27), Sydney (30), and Madrid (37).

The study also shows that Copenhagen and Oslo pay the highest salaries in the world.

Chile is placed 47th on the salary list, advancing one place compared to 2003.

The greatest differences are registered in Asia. Mumbai is Asia's least expensive city (70), while Tokyo is the most expensive (5).

Buenos Aires is one of the cheapest cities in the world, coming in at number 69.

By Morten Szygenda The Santiago Times - News about Chile