Luxembourg has retained first place for the second year in a row in the global quality of life ranking compiled by the Deutsche Bank Research Institute.
Copenhagen took second place, and Amsterdam came in third. Vienna and Munich tied for fourth place, followed by Frankfurt, Helsinki, Geneva, Zurich, and Edinburgh.
The ranking takes into account purchasing power, safety, healthcare, cost of living, housing affordability, commute time, environmental pollution, and climate.
Cities in Western and Northern Europe dominate the top ten. At the same time, the world’s largest financial centers ranked significantly lower: Paris came in 43rd, New York 46th, London 47th, and Hong Kong 55th.
Their rankings are dragged down by expensive real estate, high living costs, long commutes, and environmental issues. Thus, high salaries alone do not guarantee a city’s leadership in quality of life.
Turkey ranked first among the 41 economies surveyed in terms of the price of Apple’s new smartphone, according to a report by the Deutsche Bank Research Institute.
The 256 GB iPhone 17 Pro sells for approximately USD2,592 in the country—2.2 times more expensive than in the U.S. Japan and South Korea were the only markets where the device was cheaper than in the U.S.
The study’s authors attribute the smartphone’s high price in Turkey to taxes, import costs, and the long-term weakening of the Turkish lira.
Istanbul also ranked fourth among 69 cities in terms of the cost of a Volkswagen Golf 1.5. The car’s price is estimated at USD49,121, which is approximately 39% higher than in New York. The car is more expensive only in Singapore, Tel Aviv, and Copenhagen.
The average net monthly salary in Istanbul is about USD1,173. Rent for a three-bedroom apartment is estimated at USD1,943, for a one-bedroom apartment at USD968, and the cost of purchasing a home in the city center is approximately USD3,087 per square meter.
Thus, certain imported consumer goods in Turkey may cost more than in countries with significantly higher per capita incomes.
PJSC “Centravis Production Ukraine” (Centravis Production Ukraine, Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast), a subsidiary of Centravis Ltd., reported a 6.6% increase in production for January–June of this year—from 6,770 metric tons to 7,220 metric tons;
According to a press release on Monday, exports in monetary terms increased by nearly 15%—from 2.56 billion UAH to 2.94 billion UAH; the amount of taxes paid rose by nearly 11% to 361.5 million UAH.
“The first half of the year was another challenging period for us, one that put the entire team to the test. First and foremost, this was due to the security situation in Nikopol, where our main production facilities are located. The situation remains consistently difficult, and so far there is no reason to expect a significant improvement in the near future,” said the company’s CEO, Yuriy Atanasov.
According to him, in June, the EU—one of the company’s key markets—decided to significantly restrict opportunities for exporting Ukrainian steel products. Specifically, the EU set a quota of 6,524 metric tons for Ukrainian seamless stainless steel pipes, even though Ukraine exported 11,306 metric tons last year. “In effect, a single regulatory decision has closed off nearly half of the European market for us. The consequences of this decision could be extremely painful for both the company and the Ukrainian economy,” the CEO stated.
He added that the new trade restrictions could significantly impact Centravis’s production figures in the second half of the year. The market for seamless stainless steel pipes is quite conservative, and finding and attracting new customers in other regions takes time. One consequence of the new trade restrictions was the company’s decision to mothball its production facility in Uzhhorod—which is largely geared toward EU customers—starting September 1.
At the same time, the company plans to continue diversifying its supply geography by stepping up its efforts in the U.S., Latin American, and Middle Eastern markets, where Centravis has sales offices.
As previously reported, Centravis increased its pipe production by 6% in Q1 2026—from 3,210 metric tons in the first quarter of 2025 to 3,400 metric tons in the first quarter of 2026. Export volumes grew even more—by 10%, from 1.24 billion UAH to 1.37 billion UAH. The company also increased its tax payments to budgets at various levels.
In the first three months of 2026, “Centravis” paid 170.6 million UAH in taxes, which is 19% more than during the same period last year.
In 2025, the company produced 13.77 thousand metric tons of products. Almost the entire volume is exported to foreign markets. The company’s main markets remain Europe, the United States, and the Middle East.
Centravis’s production facilities are located in Nikopol and Uzhhorod. The company also has sales offices in the United States, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Poland, and the United Arab Emirates.
Centravis was founded in 2000 and ranks among the top ten largest manufacturers of seamless stainless steel pipes in the world. Its main production facilities are located in Nikopol (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast). In 2023, the company opened a branch in Uzhhorod.
The Centravis Ltd. holding company was established on the basis of CJSC “Nikopol Stainless Steel Pipe Plant” and the service and trading companies of LLC “Production and Commercial Enterprise ‘YUVIS’.” Its shareholders are members of the Atanasov family. Centravis Ltd. owns 100% of the shares in Centravis Production Ukraine PJSC.
New York has retained the top spot among 69 cities worldwide in terms of rental costs for both one-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments, according to data from the Deutsche Bank Research Institute.
In the ranking of three-bedroom apartment rents, Zurich, San Francisco, Boston, and Singapore follow New York. London ranked eighth, Paris 21st, Frankfurt 30th, Tokyo 40th, and Seoul 44th.
The authors of the study point out that a high nominal salary does not always translate to high disposable income. New York ranks among the top five cities globally in terms of net wages, yet a significant portion of residents’ income is consumed by housing costs.
The contrast with Tokyo is particularly striking: renting a three-bedroom apartment in the Japanese capital costs about four times less than in New York.
Data from Deutsche Bank show that housing costs are becoming one of the main factors driving differences in real living standards among the world’s largest financial centers.
Imports of trucks to Ukraine in January–June 2026 fell by 6.7% in monetary terms compared to the same period in 2025—to $446.1 million, according to statistics from the State Customs Service.
According to the published data, imports of these vehicles in June, in particular, rose by 4% compared to June 2025 and by 4% compared to May of this year—reaching $94.14 million.
As in the previous year, the largest number of trucks in January–June was imported from Poland, but imports from that country fell by 40.4%—to $58.06 million—and its share of total truck imports dropped to 13% from 20.4%.
Imports from Italy, which did not rank among the top three truck suppliers in the first half of the year, totaled $55.2 million (12.38%), while imports from France fell by 36.5% to $47.7 million (10.68%).
In January–June of last year, the top three truck suppliers were Poland, the United States, and France.
Truck imports from all other countries increased by 27% in the first half of the year, reaching $285.1 million.
At the same time, according to statistics, Ukraine exported only $1.85 million worth of trucks over the six-month period, mostly to Turkey, while a year ago, exports totaled nearly $3.5 million, also primarily to Turkey.
As previously reported, in 2025, imports of trucks into Ukraine increased by 5.5% compared to 2024—to $999.5 million, with the largest volumes coming from France—$169.2 million (42.8% more than the year before last), Poland—$162.7 million (-14.7%), and the U.S.—$109 million (+2%).
In 2026, Hong Kong remained the world’s most expensive city for purchasing a downtown apartment, according to the Deutsche Bank Research Institute’s study “Mapping the World’s Prices 2026.”
The average cost of housing in the city’s central districts is estimated at $27,753 per square meter. Zurich, Seoul, Singapore, and Geneva follow in the ranking. Despite a price decline of approximately 10% compared to pre-pandemic levels, Hong Kong retained its top spot.
Compared to the previous edition of the study, the average price per square meter in Hong Kong rose from $26,749 to $27,753. High real estate prices remain one of the main factors limiting housing affordability, even for city residents with relatively high incomes.
High real estate prices also affected Hong Kong’s ranking in the quality of life index. The city dropped from 48th to 55th place out of 69. Among other negative factors, the study’s authors cite air pollution and long commutes to work.
