The New Big Mac Index

The Economist has come out with an alternative Big Mac Index. The original Big Mac Index was introduced in Economist by Paul Woodall as an illustration to the concept of purchasing power. Big Mac Index converts the amount needed in the local currency of a country to purchase a Big Mac at McDonalds into US Dollars. An index of these values gives us an idea about the purchasing power of US Dollars in that country. Some of the countries with the highest BMI are Norway, Switzerland, Denmark and Sweden(Is it a coincidence that three out of four of these countries have a very high standard of living with high taxation and welfare policies.) The countries with the lowest BMI are the South East Asian nations like Malaysia, Hong Kong(technically not a nation), Thailand etc.

The new BMI calculates the time it takes a person to earn enough to purchase a Big Mac. Chicago, Tokyo and Toronto are the dream destinations for fast food enthusiasts where it takes a person roughly 10 minutes to earn a Big Mac. On the other end of spectrum is Nairobi, a person has to work for three hours before he can have hi Big Mac. Aamchi Mumbai fares not much better. There you will earn your burger with 70 minutes of hard work done.