SINGAPORE is the ninth most expensive place in the world to rent a three-bedroom apartment, according to a survey.

The Republic saw Asia's biggest year-on-year rental increase of 33 per cent last year, the survey by human resources firm ECA International showed.

"The demand for high-end accommodation has risen, driving up rental prices, which can be partly explained by companies expanding their operations in Singapore," said Mr Lee Quane, general manager of Hong Kong-based ECA.

This was coupled with the limited supply of property in the country, he added.

In Asia, Singapore ranked fifth.

According to the survey, a three-bedroom unit in popular expatriate areas such as Orchard Road cost about US$4,460 (S$6,030) a month on average to rent, compared with about US$3,364 in 2006.

However, Singapore is still far cheaper than Hong Kong, which is the world's most expensive place to rent a three-bedroom unit - at US$9,734 a month on average.

The rent reflected the geographical advantage of the Chinese territory for foreign firms wanting to build a base in the region, ECA said.

"Particularly in the financial services industry, people are moving into Hong Kong so, in spite of its relative high cost, it still remains one of the prime locations for foreign companies to establish themselves," said Mr Quane.

The annual survey studied the rental costs of popular expat areas in 92 locations last September and converted them to US dollars.

Asian cities, led by Hong Kong, accounted for six out of the top 10 locations that have the world's most expensive rentals for three-bedroom apartments.

Monthly rentals in Asia were on average US$3,820, well above the global level of US$2,950, said ECA.

Globally, Moscow ranked second, followed by New York City, Tokyo, and London in fifth spot.

Mumbai, India's financial hub, had the region's second-highest rental rise of 21 per cent. A three-bedroom apartment there cost US$5,991 to lease.

For other major Asian cities, Shanghai ranked seventh in Asia, Jakarta was 10th, Manila came in 14th, Bangkok was 15th and Kuala Lumpur took the 16th spot.

Karachi was the cheapest city in the world to rent a three-bedroom apartment, with average monthly rent at about US$557 or nearly eight times cheaper than in Singapore.

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