Taipei and Taichung are among the top 100 cities in the world offering the best quality of life, according to a survey released by international consultancy firm Mercer.
In the rankings, which covered 230 cities worldwide, Taipei was listed 83rd, while Taichung was 99th.
It was the first time Taichung had made the top-100 list in Mercer’s annual quality-of-living rankings. The rich cultural traditions of the central Taiwan city have helped to attract key local and international industries, Mercer said.
The survey aims to provide multinational companies and other employers with information on how to compensate their employees fairly on international assignments.
European cities typically top the rankings, along with major cities in Australia and New Zealand.
The top 10 spots in the most recent rankings — which were compiled using mainly data from September to November last year — reflect that domination.
Vienna is rated first, followed by Zurich, Auckland, Munich, Vancouver, Duesseldorf, Frankfurt, Geneva, Copenhagen and Sydney.
Vancouver, at fifth globally, is the top-ranked city in the Americas and the only one in the region to be listed in the top 10.
In Asia, Singapore tops the rankings and is placed 25th globally.
Other Asian cities in the top 100 are Tokyo (44th overall), Hong Kong (70th) and Seoul (72nd). Shanghai is ranked 101st and Beijing 118th.
At the bottom of the pile was Iraq. The rest of the bottom five includes Bangui in Central African Republic, Port-au-Prince in Haiti, Khartoum in Sudan and N’Djamena of Chad.
According to its Web site, Mercer said that its quality-of-living reports provide information for use by multinational organizations, government agencies and municipalities, and are not meant to be used as the basis for foreign investment or tourism.
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