Business trip costs to Singapore in 2017 rose to US$479 a day

Prices have risen due to higher costs of eating out in restaurants.

The average cost of a business trip to Singapore has increased to US$479 or $647 per day, compared to US$472 in 2016, ECA International revealed in its Daily Rates research. It rose from fourth place to third place and now jointly ranks with Seoul for the most expensive Asian location for business travel. Rates in Singapore have increased as well last year.

“Although only a small increase, the rise in business travel costs in Singapore reflects a growing trend,” said ECA International Asia regional director Lee Quane, “Hotel costs have risen slightly in the past 12 months, but the main reason for Singapore’s rise has been the increased cost of eating out in restaurants frequented by business travellers in the city over the past year.”

Hong Kong (US$508) is the most expensive location for business travellers, overtaking Tokyo (US$501) which dropped to second in the rankings. 

Meanwhile, the cheapest region for international business travel continues to be Malaysia, with Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru remaining at the bottom of the rankings. “The continued weakness of the Malaysian Ringgit against major currencies has ensured that the cost of business travel in Malaysia is cheaper than elsewhere in Asia,” added Quane.

Globally, the most expensive locations for business travel are New York, Geneva, and Zurich. Singapore is not in the global top 10.

ECA’s Daily Rates reports provide average costs for hotel accommodation, which makes up the bulk of any daily allowance, as well as meals, drinks, laundry, taxi transport and daily essentials. "This information is used by companies to determine daily expense allowances for staff who undertake business travel," it said.