Dubai has world's highest rental, food prices: study

18:45, 17 September 2012

DUBAI. September 17. KAZINFORM Dubai is the most expensive city in the Middle East, while in some categories the Gulf Arab metropolis is even the world's costliest place to live, according to a study on the cost of living abroad published Sunday by Swiss bank UBS.

In relation to rentals, Dubai shares the pole position as a city with the world's highest housing prices like New York and Zurich. Average monthly rental prices in the three cities are up to 100 percent above the global average, UBS said, Xinhua reports.

The Swiss largest lender added in the study that together with Norway's Oslo and Switzerland's Geneva, Dubai also has the priciest food in the world. A three-course menu in a stylish restaurant in the aforementioned three cities costs around 95 U.S. dollars.

Dubai, officially free of income taxes, became the Middle East' s most expensive city also due to its growing bureaucracy and a number of "hidden taxes." In the past two years, thousands of once- for-free parking spaces were transformed into paid parking zones. In addition, bachelors are not allowed to share apartments in order to reduce rental costs. Transport costs and traffic fines were also massively increased by the government.

Regarding the combined costs of living, Dubai ranks globally the 22nd, according to the UBS study, while Oslo is the priciest place to live for foreigners.