The Ottomani makes New Middle Eastern dining fresh and personal

The Ottomani is a New Middle Eastern supper club in Singapore that blends a culinary experience with the atmosphere of a time when the personal touch mattered. The Dandy Partnership, which brought Neon Pigeon, Summerlong and Fat Prince to Singapore’s dining scene, have teamed with Executive Chef Nic Philip to bring this experience to Singapore. 

Fresh off stints at some of London’s best venues, including The Clove Club, #26 on the World’s 50 Best list, and Yotam Ottalenghi’s Michelin-starred Nopi, Philip brings a lifetime of experience in Middle Eastern flavours and ingredients from his childhood family table to his current role. Look out for light, fresh cuisine and a passion for spice at Ottomani and unique, elevated interpretations of traditional culinary concepts and views. 

The key element to everything at The Ottomani is fire, from the intrigue and intimacy of oil lanterns and food cooked with a one-of-a-kind wood-fired earth pit. The fire is built up the night before and burned down to embers, with the next night’s menu inside to roast slowly overnight - the texture and depth of flavour obtained is impossible with more modern, less labour-intensive equipment. These unique items are served for two or more and the nightly selection includes a slow-roasted lamb shoulder with spiced molasses and sumac gremolata.

Beyond the wood-fired roasts, Chef Nic has created his own version of New Middle Eastern cuisine. The Adana beef tartare 'kebab' is a reinterpretation of the traditional dish, mixing classic spices in a steak tartare with caviar. This dish is put together tableside.

With no bar in the space, bartenders prepare drinks on a mobile trolley. The beverage programme was selected by Symphony Loo and chosen for flavour profiles. 

Source: The Ottomani. Interior of the New Middle Eastern supper club.

Group CEO Rohit Roopchand states, “We were looking for something real and exciting; something that was genuinely 'us'. By combining the delivery of classic service with the emotion of today; elements of old world design through a modern lens; and a thought-provoking menu that is authentic to our own views and experiences rather than to tradition, we look forward to introducing people to a deeper story of what this concept means to us.”

Interested?

48 Peck Seah Street, Singapore 079317. The entrance is through a neighbourhood establishment.
Open 6:30pm till late, Monday to Saturday

Call  +65 9231 9316 for reservations

Asia shines in global indices on talent, innovation

India and Vietnam are outperforming their development-level peers, according to the Global Innovation Index 2017* (GII) co-authored by Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Key findings show the rise of India as an emerging innovation centre in Asia.
 
Each year, the GII surveys some 130 economies using dozens of metrics, from patent filings to education spending providing decision makers a high-level look at the innovative activity that increasingly drives economic and social growth. In a new feature for the GII, a special section looks at “invention hotspots” around the globe that show the highest density of inventors listed in international patent applications.

Now in its 10th edition, the GII 2017 notes a continued gap in innovative capacity between developed and developing nations and lacklustre growth rates for research and development (R&D) activities, both at the government and corporate levels.

“Innovation is the engine of economic growth in an increasingly knowledge-based global economy, but more investment is needed to help boost human creativity and economic output,” said WIPO Director General Francis Gurry. “Innovation can help transform the current economic upswing into longer-term growth.”

Global rankings 2017, with 2016 rankings in brackets

1	Switzerland (No. 1 in 2016)	14	Japan (16)
2	Sweden (2)	15	France (18)
3	Netherlands (9)	16	Hong Kong (14)
4	US (4)	17	Israel (21)
5	UK (3)	18	Canada (15)
6	Denmark (8)	19	Norway (22)
7	Singapore (6)	20	Austria (20)
8	Finland (5)	21	New Zealand (17)
9	Germany (10)	22	Mainland China (25)
10	Ireland (7)	23	Australia (19)
11	Korea (11)	24	Czech Republic (27)
12	Luxembourg (12)	25	Estonia (24)
13	Iceland (13)

In 2017, high-income economies took 24 of the top 25 spots, China being the exception at No. 22. In 2016, China became the first-ever middle income economy in the top 25. 
 

“Efforts to bridge the innovation divide have to start with helping emerging economies understand their innovation strengths and weaknesses and create appropriate policies and metrics,” said Soumitra Dutta, Dean, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University. “This has been the GII’s purpose for more than ten years now.”

A group of middle and lower-income economies performed significantly better on innovation than their current level of development would predict: a total of 17 economies comprise these ‘innovation achievers’ this year, a slight increase from 2016. Next to innovation powerhouses such as mainland China, Japan, and Korea, a group of Asian economies including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam are actively working to improve their innovation ecosystems and rank high in a number of important indicators related to education, research and development (R&D), productivity growth, high-tech exports, among others.  

The theme of the GII 2017, Innovation Feeding the World, looks at innovation carried out in agriculture and food systems. Over the next decades, the agriculture and food sector will face an enormous rise in global demand and increased competition for limited natural resources. In addition, it will need to adapt to and help mitigate climate change. Innovation is key to sustaining the productivity growth required to meet this rising demand and to helping enhance the networks that integrate the sustainable food production, processing, distribution, consumption, and waste management known as food systems.

“We are already witnessing the rapid, worldwide emergence of ‘digital agriculture,’ which includes drones, satellite-based sensors and field robotics,” said Bruno Lanvin, INSEAD Executive Director for Global Indices. “Now there is an urgent need for ‘smart agriculture’ to optimise supply and distribution chains and foster creative new business models that minimise pressure on land, energy and other natural resources - while addressing the needs of the world’s poorest.”

“By 2050, the world’s population is estimated to reach 9.7 billion. This presents the global agricultural sector with a daunting challenge. The stage has been set for a potential global food crisis if policy makers and other stakeholders fail to implement agricultural innovation that significantly boosts productivity,” said Barry Jaruzelski, Principal at Strategy&, PwC's strategy consulting business.

Korea maintains its top overall rankings in patenting and other intellectual property (IP)-related indicators, while ranking second in human capital and research, with its business sector contributing significantly to R&D efforts. Japan, ranked third in the region, is in the top 10 global economies for R&D, information and communication technologies, trade, competition, market scale, knowledge absorption, creation, and diffusion.

China continues moving ahead in the overall GII ranking (22^nd overall this year), reflecting high scores in business sophistication and knowledge and technology outputs. China this year displays a strong performance in several indicators, including the presence of global R&D companies, research talent in business enterprise, patent applications and other IP‐related variables.

Within the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN): 

• Singapore is the top performer in most of the indicators, with a few notable exceptions: ICT services exports, where the Philippines leads, and expenditure on education, where Vietnam leads. 
• Thailand’s strengths include creative goods exports and gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD) financed by business, where it places 5th and 6^th globally. 
• Vietnam shows the second best rank of the region in expenditure on education and also performs well in labour productivity growth, economy-wide investment, and foreign direct investment net inflows. 
• Malaysia ranks well in high-tech imports and exports, university/industry research collaboration, and graduates in science and engineering.

By subregion, India, 60^th globally, is the top-ranked economy in Central and Southern Asia. It has outperformed on innovation relative to its GDP per capita for seven years in a row, researchers note. India has shown improvement in most areas, including in infrastructure, business sophistication, knowledge and technology and creative outputs. India ranks 14^th overall in the presence of global R&D companies, considerably better than comparable groups of lower- and upper-middle-income economies. India also surpasses most other middle-income economies in science and engineering graduates, gross capital formation, GERD performed by business, research talent, on the input side; quality of scientific publications, growth rate of GDP per worker, high-tech and ICT services exports, creative goods exports, high-tech manufactures, and IP receipts on the output side.

“Public policy plays a pivotal role in creating an enabling environment conducive to innovation. In the last two years, we have seen important activities around the GII in India like the formation of India’s high-level Task Force on Innovation and consultative exercises on both innovation policy and better innovation metrics,” said Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, Confederation of Indian Industry.

Iran (75^th overall) excels in tertiary education, ranking second in the world in number of graduates in science and engineering. Tajikistan (94th) is first in the world in microfinance loans, while Kazakhstan (78^th) ranks first globally in pupil‐teacher ratio and third in ease of protecting minority investors.

Third in the Northern Africa and Western Asia region is the UAE (35^th globally), benefiting from increased data availability and shows strengths in tertiary inbound mobility, innovation clusters and ICT-driven business model innovation. Sixteen of the 19 economies in the Northern Africa and Western Asia region are in the top 100 globally, including Turkey (43rd), Qatar (49th), KSA (55th), Kuwait (56th), Bahrain (66th), Oman (77th), Lebanon (81st), Azerbaijan (82nd), and Jordan (83rd).

The GII, in its 10th edition this year, is co-published by Cornell University, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a specialised agency of the United Nations. Published annually since 2007, the GII is now a leading benchmarking tool for business executives, policy makers and others seeking insight into the state of innovation around the world. Policymakers, business leaders and other stakeholders use the GII to evaluate progress on a continual basis.

The core of the GII report consists of a ranking of world economies’ innovation capabilities and results. Recognising the key role of innovation as a driver of economic growth and prosperity, and the need for a broad horizontal vision of innovation applicable to developed and emerging economies, the GII includes indicators that go beyond the traditional measures of innovation such as the level of research and development.

In April, INSEAD separately announced that Singapore had been ranked No. 1 in Asia Pacific and No. 2 globally according to the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) 2017. 

Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2017 
Rankings: Top Ten

1 Switzerland

2 Singapore

3 UK

4 US

5 Sweden

6 Australia

7 Luxembourg

8 Denmark

9 Finland

10 Norway

Singapore is ranked second globally for the fourth consecutive year, retaining its top spot in Asia Pacific. Australia (6th), New Zealand (14th), Japan (22nd), Malaysia (28th) and South Korea (29th), ranked within the Top 30 globally.

Produced in partnership with The Adecco Group and the Human Capital Leadership Institute of Singapore (HCLI), the GTCI is an annual benchmarking report that measures the ability of countries to compete for talent. Focusing on Talent and Technology, the 2017 report explores the effects of technological change on talent competitiveness and the future of work, arguing that while jobs at all levels continue to be replaced by machines, technology is also creating new opportunities.

In Asia Pacific, the countries that ranked within the Top 30 globally included:

-          Singapore (2nd)

-          Australia (6th)

-          New Zealand (14th)

-          Japan (22nd)

-          Malaysia (28th)

-          South Korea (29th)

-          Philippines (52nd)

-          Kazakhstan (53rd)

-          China (54th)

-          Thailand (73rd)

-          Sri Lanka (82nd)

-          Kyrgyzstan (87th)

-          Mongolia (72nd)

-          Vietnam (86th)

-          Indonesia (90th)

-          India (92nd)

-          Bhutan (98th)

-          Iran (103rd)

-          Cambodia (108th)

-          Pakistan (111th)

-          Bangladesh (113rd)

The GTCI is an annual study measuring the ability of countries to compete for talent. Designed for governments, businesses and non-profit organisations, the GTCI ranks over 100 economies according to their ability to develop, attract and retain talent.

High-ranking countries share key traits, including educational systems that meet the needs of the economy; employment policies that favour flexibility, mobility and entrepreneurship; and high connectedness of stakeholders in business, education and government as well as high level of technological competence, INSEAD said.

Ilian Mihov, Dean of INSEAD, said: “This year’s GTCI report shows that countries in the Asia Pacific region demonstrate strong talent readiness for technology. It also highlights the important role of education. Educational systems have to revamp to help learners foster learning agility and adjust on the fly of changing conditions. INSEAD looks forward to fully playing its role as a leading global provider of talent and leadership.”

Singapore has shown outstanding performance in the Enable, Attract and Global Knowledge pillars. Countries can learn from Singapore’s well-developed regulatory and market landscapes for global talent to thrive and its ability to anticipate the movements of the economy.

Su-Yen Wong, CEO of Human Capital Leadership Institute, commented: “The recent report published by Singapore’s Committee on the Future Economy suggested that building strong digital capabilities is one of the key strategies that will propel Singapore’s growth for the next two decades. Digital technologies will help small and exposed economies like Singapore punch above their weight by creating means for their businesses and talent to reach out to the global market. Countries must continue to upskill their workforce so that they can adapt to the digitisation wave and the sweeping structural changes that are poised to shakeup traditional work arrangements.”

Asia’s giants China (54th) and India (92nd) are still a fair distance away from the top. Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director of Global Indices at INSEAD and co-editor of the report said: “Overall, a big challenge for China and India lies in their ability to attract talent, and they both face the issue of local higher-skilled workers leaving to live and work abroad. To improve their attractiveness, the countries can further boost their regulatory and market landscapes.

“However, delving deeper and looking at the city-level, the two countries have metropolises exemplary in terms of their talent attractiveness. Shanghai and Mumbai (apart from Singapore) are the only Asian cities identified and ranked in the inaugural edition of the Global Cities Talent Competitiveness Index (GCTCI), but future editions will undoubtedly include more, confirming the growing attractiveness of Asian cities.”

Australia (6th) performed exceptionally being ranked in the Top 10 this year, as it is one of the top countries in the Attract and Global Knowledge Skills pillars. However, Vocational and Technical Skills show room for improvement. This may indicate that the country’s structural shift towards knowledge jobs and services is perhaps leaving gaps in the technical/vocational area.

Christophe Duchatellier, Regional Head of Asia Pacific, The Adecco Group, commented, “Although Singapore, Australia and New Zealand all feature in the Top 20 of this edition of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index, these latest findings highlight the increasing challenges that many countries in the Asia Pacific region have in attracting and retaining talent. In 2017 we are already observing organisations across the region placing an increased emphasis on world-class talent attraction strategies and tactics that will support them in remaining competitive. We would expect to see more organisations offering internship and apprenticeship programmes to foster skills development.”

Malaysia (28th) is the top-ranked country in the group of upper-middle-income countries. The country ranks above higher-income countries such as South Korea (29th).

Paul Evans, The Shell Chair Professor of Human Resources and Organisational Development, Emeritus, at INSEAD, and Academic Director and co-editor of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index said: “Malaysia performs particularly well in the pillars of the Enabling context and Vocational and Technical Skills. It also does well on External Openness as it has been able to attract talent from overseas. In addition, in terms of talent readiness for technology, Malaysia ranks higher than South Korea even though the IT infrastructure of the latter is much superior. The country can boost its rankings if it further improves in Internal Openness in terms of tolerance of minorities.”

Japan (22nd) has a solid overall performance, although it dipped slightly from last year. One of its main challenges is the Attract pillar where it is far behind the top three countries of this region. Middle-income countries such as Malaysia attract more foreign talent.

Although South Korea (29th) makes it into the top 30 this year, it is the lowest-ranking high-income country in the region. Despite being the top country in dimensions such as Tertiary enrollment and the Market Landscape—with world-class R&D in­vestments—the country has major room for improvement in the Attract pillar.

The Philippines (52nd) is the top lower-middle-income country, ranking above several upper-middle-income countries such as China (54th), and even above some high-income countries such as Kuwait (57th) and Oman (59th). Its greatest strength is its good pool of both Vocational and Technical Skills and Global Knowl­edge Skills.

Interested?

Download the Global Innovation Index 2017 report

Read the Global Talent Competitiveness Index report

Download the GTCI 2017 Infographic at this link

Watch the GTCI 2017 Video graphic at this link

The Asia infographic is also attached for media usage.

*To support the global innovation debate, to guide polices and to highlight good practices, metrics are required to assess innovation and related policy performance. The GII creates an environment in which innovation factors are under continual evaluation, including the following features:

• 127 country/economy profiles, including data, ranks, and strengths and weaknesses

• 81 data tables for indicators from over 30 international public and private sources, of which 57 are hard data, 19 composite indicators, and five survey questions

• A transparent and replicable computation methodology including 90% confidence intervals for each index ranking (GII, output and input sub-indices) and an analysis of factors affecting year-on-year changes in rankings

The GII 2017 is calculated as the average of two sub-indices. The Innovation Input Sub-Index gauges elements of the national economy which embody innovative activities grouped in five pillars:

• Institutions, 
• Human capital and research, 
• Infrastructure, 
• Market sophistication, and 
• Business sophistication. 

The Innovation Output Sub-Index captures actual evidence of innovation results, divided in two pillars: knowledge and technology outputs andcreative outputs.

The index is submitted to an independent statistical audit by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission.

posted from Bloggeroid

Seabourn Encore begins maiden season in Asia Pacific waters

Source: Seabourn. International recording artist and best-selling soprano 
Sarah Brightman officially named the ultra-luxury ship Seabourn Encore.

Seabourn, the ultra-luxury cruise line, formally introduced Seabourn Encore to the world in Singapore. The 600-guest ship is the fourth ultra-luxury vessel to join the Seabourn fleet and the first of two all-suite ships to be designed by hospitality design icon Adam Tihany. The Seabourn Ovation is currently under construction and is scheduled to launch in spring 2018.

"The launch of Seabourn Encore marks the start of a new era of ultra-luxury cruising," said Richard Meadows, President of Seabourn. "This ship is stunningly beautiful and I know guests are going to be absolutely captivated as they step aboard and see it firsthand."

Lionel Yeo, Chief Executive, Singapore Tourism Board, said the christening was testament to the growing appeal of Southeast Asia as the destination of choice for discerning travellers. "We are confident that Seabourn's guests will enjoy experiencing the rich and diverse offerings of the region, and look forward to welcoming more of Carnival Corporation's ships to Singapore."

S Iswaran, Minister for Trade and Industry, Singapore, noted that Southeast Asia allows cruisers to take advantage of a year-round favourable climate, pristine coastlines, and diverse cultural and historical sites. "This region is well-positioned to continue benefitting from Asia’s growing interest in cruising. Cruise passenger volumes in Asia have increased by about 40% since 2012, and are expected to keep growing," he said.

Intended by Tihany "to feel more like a luxury yacht", Seabourn Encore features modern design elements and innovations in keeping with Seabourn's reputation for understated elegance, as well as one additional deck and newly expanded public areas. New features include The Retreat, a secluded for-charge sanctuary for guests to stretch out and relax in private cabanas, and Sushi, a one-of-a-kind dining destination found on no other ship in the Seabourn fleet.

With the inaugural voyage, Seabourn Encore is also marking the formal debut of several new onboard partner programmes. Spa and Wellness with Dr Andrew Weil is being introduced in partnership with The Onboard Spa by Steiner, offering guests a holistic spa and wellness experience that integrates physical, social, environmental and spiritual wellbeing.

A new production show, An Evening with Tim Rice, created exclusively for Seabourn in association with Belinda King Creative Productions, will also have its debut on board in the ship's Grand Salon. Seabourn Encore will also feature The Grill by Thomas Keller, a restaurant inspired by the classic American chophouse that first opened on Seabourn Quest last year. All three partner programmes will be rolled out across the entire Seabourn fleet by 2018.

Following the naming ceremony, Seabourn Encore departed on its inaugural voyage, the 10-day Gems of the Java Sea cruise, bound for Indonesia. The ship will then move on to Australia and New Zealand, followed by a reverse of the earlier 10-day Gems of the Java Sea cruise to Singapore, then the 16-day Jewels of India & Arabia cruise to Dubai, and finish her first season with a 19-day Arabian Gems & Holy Land voyage that ends in Athens, Greece on May 5.

Interested?

A veranda suite begins at US$3,999 per person (double occupancy) excluding taxes and surcharges for the 10-day Gems of the Java Sea cruise, which departs Denpasar, Bali in Indonesia on March 22 and ends in Singapore on April 1.

Hashtag: #SeabournEncore

Singapore still popular as a regional hub, fourth-most expensive city globally

• Hong Kong is the most expensive city globally, with four other Asian cities in the global top 10 
• With a weaker RMB, all Chinese cities surveyed dropped in the rankings – Shanghai (7) and Beijing (10) 
• Singapore remains in fourth place, followed by Tokyo, which climbed from 11 to fifth 

Mercer Cost of Living Survey – Worldwide Rankings 2016 (The Mercer international basket, including rental accommodation costs)
Rank as of March		City	Country
2015	2016
2	1	HONG KONG	Hong Kong
1	2	LUANDA	Angola
3	3	ZURICH	Switzerland
4	4	SINGAPORE	Singapore
11	5	TOKYO	Japan
13	6	KINSHASA	Dem. Rep. of the Congo
6	7	SHANGHAI	China
5	8	GENEVA	Switzerland
10	9	NDJAMENA	Chad
7	10	BEIJING	China

Mercer’s 22nd annual Cost of Living Survey* finds that factors including currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and instability of accommodation prices, contribute to the cost of expatriate packages for employees on international assignments.

“Despite technology advances and the rise of a globally-connected workforce, deploying expatriate employees remains an increasingly important aspect of a competitive multinational company’s business strategy,” said Ilya Bonic, Senior Partner and President of Mercer’s Talent business. “However, with volatile markets and stunted economic growth in many parts of the world, a keen eye on cost efficiency is essential, including a focus on expatriate remuneration packages. As organisations’ appetite to rapidly grow and scale globally continues, it is necessary to have accurate and transparent data to compensate fairly for all types of assignments, including short-term and local plus status.”

According to Mercer’s 2016 Cost of Living Survey, Hong Kong tops the list of most expensive cities for expatriates, pushing Luanda, Angola to second position. Zurich in Switzerland and Singapore remain in third and fourth positions, respectively, whereas Tokyo, Japan is fifth, up six places from last year. Other Asian cities appearing in the top 10 of Mercer’s costliest cities for expatriates are Shanghai (7) and Beijing (10).

Mercer's survey is one of the world’s most comprehensive, and is designed to help multinational companies and governments determine compensation strategies for their expatriate employees. New York City is used as the base city for all comparisons and currency movements are measured against the US dollar. The survey includes over 375 cities throughout the world; this year’s ranking includes 209 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, and entertainment.

“Maximising return on investment with fewer resources and talent shortages worldwide makes growth initiatives more difficult for multinationals,” said Bonic. “Organisations must ensure they can facilitate the moves they need to drive business results by offering fair and competitive compensation packages.”

Bonic added that costs of goods and services shift with inflation and currency volatility making overseas assignment costs sometimes greater and sometimes smaller. Low levels of inflation have translated into fairly steady cost increases around the world.

Asia Pacific

This year, Hong Kong (1) emerged as the most expensive city for expatriates both in Asia and globally, as a consequence of Luanda’s drop in the ranking due to the weakening of its local currency. Singapore (4) remained steady, while Tokyo (5) climbed six places. Shanghai (7) and Beijing (10) follow. Shenzhen, China (12) is up two places, while Seoul, Korea (15) and Guangzhou, China (18) dropped seven and three spots, respectively.

Mario Ferraro, Global Mobility Leader for Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) at Mercer, said, “Many Asian cities remain amongst the world’s most expensive places to deploy expatriates. However, this has not hindered companies from relocating talent here, as the region continues to offer growth potential and the demand for top talent remains high. With the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) becoming official on January 1 this year, the region represents a US$2.6 trillion market and this continues to attract companies to Southeast Asia. Companies tend to choose Singapore as the regional hub for this huge collective market, because of its talent pool and established infrastructure.”

“The strengthening of the Japanese yen pushed Japanese cities up in the ranking,” said Nathalie Constantin-Métral, Principal at Mercer with responsibility for compiling the survey ranking. “However, Chinese cities fell in the ranking due to the weakening of the Chinese yuan against the US dollar.”

Mumbai (82) is India’s most expensive city, followed by New Delhi (130) and Chennai (158). Kolkata (194) and Bangalore (180) are the least expensive Indian cities ranked. Elsewhere in Asia, Bangkok, Thailand (74), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (151) and Hanoi, Vietnam (106) plummeted twenty-nine, thirty-eight, and twenty places, respectively. Baku, Azerbaijan (172) had the most drastic fall in the ranking, plummeting more than one hundred places. The city of Ashkhabad in Turkmenistan climbed sixty-one spots to rank 66 globally.

Australian cities have witnessed some of the most dramatic falls in the ranking this year as the local currency has depreciated against the US dollar. Brisbane (96) and Canberra (98) dropped thirty and thirty-three spots, respectively, while Sydney (42), Australia’s most expensive ranked city for expatriates, experienced a relatively moderate drop of eleven places. Melbourne fell twenty-four spots to rank 71.

The Middle East

For the Middle East, Dubai, UAE was ranked 21st, while Abu Dhabi, UAE (25), and Beirut, Lebanon (50) were also in the top 50. Jeddah, KSA (121) remains the least expensive city in the region despite rising thirty places. “Several cities in the Middle East experienced a jump in the ranking, as they are being pushed up by other locations’ decline, as well as the strong increase for expatriate rental accommodation costs, particularly in Abu Dhabi and Jeddah,” said Constantin-Métral.

Interested?

Mercer produces individual cost of living and rental accommodation cost reports for each city surveyed. Get more information on city rankings. 

Buy individual city reports

*The figures for Mercer’s cost of living and rental accommodation costs comparisons are derived from a survey conducted in March 2016. Exchange rates from that time and Mercer’s international basket of goods and services from its Cost of Living survey have been used as base measurements.

Zain customers receive extra rewards when reserving through Booking.com

- Service now available in Zain operations in Kuwait and Iraq, other countries to follow soon

- Reservations made through a dedicated Zain link are converted to additional complimentary mobile services

Source: Zain Group. Zain to offer rewards for Booking.com orders.

The Zain Group, a mobile telecom innovator with operations in eight markets across the Middle East and Africa, has partnered with hotel reservation booking services site Booking.com to offer Zain customers additional complimentary mobile services for using the hotel service through a dedicated link. Zain has previously partnered global technology and content companies such as Uber and global computer game developer ZeptoLab to customers.

Zain customers who book a hotel stay through booking.zain.com will gain exclusive benefits based on the value of their booking. By inserting their phone number, each time they complete a booking on the site and fulfil the reservation, they will be rewarded with the allocation of additional mobile data or voice benefits that are credited to either their prepaid or post-paid line.

In Kuwait, customers will receive additional free Internet capacity of up to 1TB, while in Iraq, customers will benefit from additional voice and SMS credits. Other Zain country operations will offer similar benefits according to the local market preferences.

Zain Group CEO Scott Gegenheimer said, “As we evolve to become a digital lifestyle operator, this agreement with another world class digital marketplace provider represents Zain’s ongoing commitment to delivering exciting and compelling user experiences to our customers. We admire Booking.com’s customer orientation in its own right, and feel that the collaboration between our two organizations will be of enormous mutual benefit offering our customers the best choice of rewards and convenience.”

The partnership with Booking.com further builds on the establishment of the Zain Digital Frontier and Innovation (ZDFI) business unit, which is charged with launching Zain into the digital space by identifying new business areas, strategic partnerships, acquisition opportunities and other investments. Collectively, these activities look to create new revenue streams to maximise the group’s high-speed 4G-LTE broadband networks, customer assets, network intelligence and payment and billing frameworks.

Booking.com is available in more than 40 languages, and offers over 900,000 active properties in 223 countries and territories. The site offers competitive hotel rates and an easy way for travellers to choose and book accommodation.

Interested?

The service is now available to Zain customers in Kuwait and Iraq. It will be rolled out to other Zain country operations in due course.

Hyatt Regency Suzhou is first Hyatt hotel in Jiangsu province

Hyatt Regency Suzhou has formally opened in the city of Suzhou, known for its ancient canals, stone bridges and UNESCO-listed classic gardens. 

Source: Hyatt. The 29-floor atrium is the
highest in the city.

"The opening of Hyatt Regency Suzhou is a strategic step for Hyatt as we grow our brand presence in China," said Christopher Koehler, VP of operations - China, Hyatt. "We look forward to fostering meaningful connections among business and leisure travelers around the world."

Located in the Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), Hyatt Regency Suzhou is part of Jinghope Plaza, a new complex project that includes a luxury shopping mall, entertainment venues and two Grade-A office buildings.

Hyatt Regency Suzhou has a subway station at its doorstep, and is expected to become a key connecting point between Suzhou and Shanghai, offering easy accessibility to visiting guests. It takes just 25 minutes by train to reach Shanghai, one hour by car to reach Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, and 10 minutes by car to reach Suzhou SIP Railway Station, the transportation hub of Yangtze River Delta region. The Suzhou International Expo Center is nearby as well.

The hotel offers 355 spacious guestrooms and suites plus a Regency Club. There are five restaurants and lounges, more than 15,000 square feet of innovative meeting and event venues, and spa and wellness facilities.

"We are delighted to introduce the Hyatt Regency brand's signature world-class dining, hospitality and amenities to one of China's most historic cities," said Gary Chan, GM of Hyatt Regency Suzhou. "With an energetic team of expert planners and passionate hoteliers, we are ready to welcome our guests from the neighbourhood and around the world."

Hyatt Regency Suzhou features both international flavors and authentic local dishes with fresh seasonal ingredients. Hua Chi 88 is a Chinese dining restaurant serving authentic Suzhou and Huaiyang cuisines, Taihu Boat cuisine from nearby Tai Lake, and Peking duck roasted over fruitwood in the traditional duck oven. Live show kitchens throughout the dining room add to the theatrical atmosphere. Six private dining rooms feature large windows and private bathrooms.

The Fireplace is an international grill restaurant with a European bistro-style ambience. The open kitchen serves up Italian pizzas and grilled specialties. The Fireplace also features a mosaic and marble bar with a Manhattan vibe.

Tea House on the ground floor serves light snacks, beverages and cocktails, and provides free Wi-Fi. 

Beneath the magnificent 29-story atrium, The Atrium is ideal for informal meetings and gatherings. Market Cafe occupies a second-floor space with double-height windows where guests can eat out of the pan, off the grill and out of the wok.

Hyatt Regency Suzhou is the place for every occasion with more than 15,000 square feet of meetings and events space. The Residence is a new-concept events venue comprised of four multifunctional rooms with large French windows, hosting up to 360 guests. The rooms feature versatile sliding screens that open onto a large foyer, and a dedicated Loft Kitchen is fully equipped for creative dining experiences. The Residence is ideal for conferences, meetings and cocktail events. 

Designed in contemporary style, the 6,240-square-foot Regency Ballroom can host up to 450 people for a cocktail event and 340 for a private dining event. The ballroom can also be divided into two rooms for smaller gatherings. A large VIP/Bridal Dressing Room and lounge are available. 

All venues are appointed with advanced technology and communications systems as well as complimentary wireless Internet connectivity. A private street-front entrance provides exclusivity.