Asian Expatriates Vote Singapore as Best City to Live: Survey

Singapore is the best city globally for Asian expatriates to live in due mainly to its quality of life and low crime rate, a survey released Tuesday by ECA International showed.

Sydney was rated second in the survey, with the third spot shared by Melbourne and Kobe in Japan, the human resources firm said.

Rounding out the top 10 list for Asian expatriates was Copenhagen in fifth spot, followed by Canberra and Vancouver. Wellington and Yokohama shared eighth spot, with Dublin one place behind.

ECA said the island-state, Southeast Asia's most advanced economy, was ranked above the other cities also because it offered Asian expatriates a similar feel to their home countries.

"Since quality of living is relative to where someone comes from and to where they are going, our scores take into account the home and destination country," said Lee Quane, ECA International's general manager in Hong Kong.

ECA International's annual survey is based on categories such as climate, air quality, health services, housing, political tensions and personal safety.

Within Asia, Hong Kong and Tokyo were ranked joint fourth behind Singapore, Kobe and Yokahama, ECA International said.

Trailing in sixth spot was Taipei, followed by Macau and Bangkok, with Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur and Georgetown cities sharing ninth spot while Shanghai and Seoul were in 11th and 12th places respectively.

Source-AFP
SRM/L