做外派人員真的花費更多嗎 合理費用還是與人攀比

BBC News – If you’re an expat in Hong Kong, a cup of coffee costs nearly $8. An unfurnished two-bedroom apartment in an “appropriate neighbourhood” will set you back $6,800 a Month. A carton of milk? $4.

BBC新聞 – 如果你是在香港的外籍人士，喝一杯咖啡就要花近8美元。“合宜的小區”不帶傢俱的兩居公寓月租費6800美元。一盒牛奶？4美元。

That’s according to global consultancy firm Mercer, which last month ranked the most expensive cities in the world for expats in its 2016 Cost of Living report. Hong Kong was top of the list, followed by Angolan capital Luanda, then Zurich in Switzerland and Singapore. The list is compiled based on measuring the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location. Items compared include accommodation, transport, food, clothing, household goods and leisure activities.

這是根據全球諮詢公司美世的數據 – 該公司上月對2016年世界上外派員工生活成本最貴城市作了排名。香港位列榜首，安哥拉首都羅安達緊隨其後，然後是瑞士蘇黎世和新加坡。該榜單的編撰，依據的是對每個地方200多項比較成本的衡量。比較項包括衣食住行，家庭用品和休閒活動。

But do people really pay those prices, or are there ways for expats to live in places like Hong Kong or Luanda for less? What is it about the expat experience that makes these cities so expensive for foreigners to live there, but not necessarily locals?

但人們是真的支付了這些價格, 還是對住在香港或羅安達等地的外派員工來說，有少花錢的方法呢？使得這些城市對居住在那裏的外僑來說如此昂貴，但對當地人來說卻不一定這麼貴的外派員工經驗是什麼呢？

Dean Blackburn, head of HSBC Expat, an offshore banking arm of the HSBC Group catering to expatriates, said that rent was a major expense for expats, particularly in cities like Singapore, Hong Kong, London or New York. According to the bank’s own research, only one in three expats received an accommodation allowance from their employer.

爲外派人員服務的匯豐集團離岸銀行業務部門“匯豐外派員工”負責人布萊克本說，房租是外派人員的費用大頭，特別是在新加坡，香港，倫敦或紐約這樣的城市。根據該行自己的研究，只有三分之一的外派人員從僱主那裏得到了住房補貼。

Not all expats are as money-minded. Indeed, according to Keren Bobker, an independent financial advisor and long-term resident of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, a “keeping up with the Joneses mentality” had led many expats into serious debt…

並非所有外派員工都同樣地具有金錢頭腦。其實，根據獨立財務顧問，阿聯酋迪拜的長期居民鮑勃克的說法，“與左鄰右舍攀比的心態”使許多外派員工陷入了嚴重的債務…….

Moving overseas with a family can also ramp up costs due to additional spending on school fees, health care and regular trips back home.

舉家遷至海外也會由於在學費，健康醫療和定期返家之旅上的額外開銷而加大生活成本。