Joined: 13 Oct 2004 Posts: 8550 Location: California Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 1:27 am Post subject:
Study Says Oslo Is World's Priciest City
By SUE LEEMAN, Associated Press Writer
Oslo has overtaken Tokyo as the world's most expensive city, according to a survey published Tuesday. Tokyo had held the top spot for 14 years in the Economist Intelligence Unit's biannual survey.
Of 17 U.S. cities featured in the survey, the most expensive were New York (27th), Chicago and Los Angeles (tied for 35th), and San Francisco (40th).
Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, saw the largest proportional rise in the cost of living in 2005, moving above another Japanese city, Osaka, into third place, the survey showed. Paris was in fifth place, followed by Copenhagen, London, Zurich, Geneva and Helsinki.
The emergence of Oslo, Norway's capital, at No. 1 "highlights a much wider increase in the relative cost of living across Europe, driven by the long-term underperformance of the dollar," the Economist Intelligence Unit said.
The survey found that cities in developing countries are recording advances in the relative cost of living, some of them buoyed by entry into the European Union or accession talks. Belgrade (107th), Bucharest (95th), Kiev (82nd), Warsaw (63rd), Prague (58th) and Istanbul (48th) all saw a relative jump of more than 5 percent in the cost of living, the study showed.
In many Asian cities, economic growth has pushed up the cost of living up, the report said. Seoul, at No. 13, overtook Hong Kong (14th) as the most expensive city in the region after Tokyo and Osaka.
However, despite the appreciation of the yuan since it freed itself from a fixed rate from the U.S. dollar in July, Chinese cities have experienced a relative fall in the rankings as increased investment opens up pricing competition and lowers tariffs on branded goods in larger urban centers.
Shanghai, the most expensive Chinese city on the list, is still only at No. 51, up five places from last year.
Among cities in sub-Saharan Africa, costs rose largely because of high inflation, the report said. Lagos in Nigeria (63rd), the Zambian capital Lusaka (91st) and Nairobi, Kenya (93rd) all experienced double-digit inflation. This had the greatest impact for Lusaka, Zambia, which rose 18 places in the ranking to No. 91.
In North America, Canadian cities are now more expensive than all but the largest cities surveyed in the United States. Montreal and Vancouver shared 43rd place.
In Latin America, the sharpest rise in the rankings was shown by the Brazilian cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, which each jumped 22 places to tie for 87th amid rising consumer prices.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 1:37 am Post subject:
dochira wrote:
Study Says Oslo Is World's Priciest City
By SUE LEEMAN, Associated Press Writer
Oslo has overtaken Tokyo as the world's most expensive city, according to a survey published Tuesday. Tokyo had held the top spot for 14 years in the Economist Intelligence Unit's biannual survey.
i heard they're rioting in tokyo because they were overthrown...some guy was buying some gyoza for only 6 bucks and exclaimed,"what is the cheap shit!" and proceeded to jump over the counter and strangle the seller.
Joined: 13 Oct 2004 Posts: 8550 Location: California Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 1:39 am Post subject:
Tu_triky wrote:
i heard they're rioting in tokyo because they were overthrown...some guy was buying some gyoza for only 6 bucks and exclaimed,"what is the cheap shit!" and proceeded to jump over the counter and strangle the seller.
Let's see how the Norwegians handle being numero uno in this category. Should be interesting.
Joined: 24 Jun 2005 Posts: 12316 Location: burunto o suimasu ka? Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 1:42 am Post subject:
Tu_triky wrote:
i heard they're rioting in tokyo because they were overthrown...some guy was buying some gyoza for only 6 bucks and exclaimed,"what is the cheap shit!" and proceeded to jump over the counter and strangle the seller.
Really?
I heard he went home and burned his house down....
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 2:39 am Post subject:
excerpt of article re: former Live Door CEO:
Fallen Horiemon's new digs -- 3 tatami mats with bento and butt service
In a land where even close friends address each other with the honorific "san," it spoke bucket loads that Takafumi Horie was so popular, and many felt such familiarity with him, that he was almost universally known by his nickname of Horiemon.
But now, Shukan Post (2/10) notes, the disgraced former CEO of Livedoor Co. will be called only by the four-digit number assigned to him while he bides his time inside the Tokyo Detention Center awaiting trial on a charge of breaking the Securities and Exchange Law.
As if being shunted out of his job wasn't already bad enough, he has little to look forward to behind bars, as he is shoved away in a tiny cell, fed only bland foods and, perhaps most horrifyingly, receives regular anal probes.
"As soon as he walked into the center, there would have been a guard barking out questions about his personal details like name and date of birth. Then, he'd have to hand over his wallet, mobile phone and anything else in his possession. After that, he'd go for a physical, where they check his height, weight, blood pressure and eyesight," an ex-con who spent several months in the detention center tells Shukan Pos before explaining why he feels that Horiemon is going to find the slammer a real pain in the ass. "Following the physical, he'll be told to strip naked and the anal inspection awaits him. A guard will approach him, order him to face the opposite direction and bend over while spreading his bottom cheeks. It's awful."
Horie's cell has an area of about three tatami mats, or some 9 square meters. It contains a toilet and sink. There is a window, but the special reinforced glass is opaque and he won't be able to see the sky. It's a far cry from the 2.2 million yen per month, 40-mat room with its glorious view of Tokyo Tower that he had been used to living in posh Roppongi Hills. (@ 115 Yen to the dollar that means his rent is 19,000 USD a month)
Joined: 07 Oct 2005 Posts: 9573 Location: �o�J�i�_ Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 3:32 am Post subject:
Tu_triky wrote:
excerpt of article re: former Live Door CEO:
Fallen Horiemon's new digs -- 3 tatami mats with bento and butt service
... he has little to look forward to behind bars, as he is shoved away in a tiny cell, fed only bland foods and, perhaps most horrifyingly, receives regular anal probes.
...
It's a far cry from the 2.2 million yen per month, 40-mat room with its glorious view of Tokyo Tower that he had been used to living in posh Roppongi Hills. (@ 115 Yen to the dollar that means his rent is 19,000 USD a month)
...
From what I've heard, it sounds like brokeback mountain. I guess that's what you get for screwing people. I hope that'll be the fate of Enron's CEO too. Playing drop the soap in the showers. I won't have my money back, but at least he won't be able to enjoy it.
Too bad I won't be able to rent his former appartment. A $228 000 a year rent is too much for me. _________________
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 3:48 am Post subject:
tabana wrote:
From what I've heard, it sounds like brokeback mountain. I guess that's what you get for screwing people. I hope that'll be the fate of Enron's CEO too. Playing drop the soap in the showers. I won't have my money back, but at least he won't be able to enjoy it.
Too bad I won't be able to rent his former appartment. A $228 000 a year rent is too much for me.
seriously.
maybe we can get about 6,000 members from this board and all chip in for the rent.
Joined: 07 Oct 2005 Posts: 9573 Location: �o�J�i�_ Country:
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 4:01 am Post subject:
That'd be great to have a place to crash in Roppongi Hills and $40 a year won't hurt my budget too much. I'm not a big fan of multi-property though. _________________
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Let's see how the Norwegians handle being numero uno in this category. Should be interesting. 
I guess that's what you get for screwing people. I hope that'll be the fate of Enron's CEO too. Playing drop the soap in the showers. I won't have my money back, but at least he won't be able to enjoy it. 
