Mercer has just released its top 50 most expensive cities in the world based on cost of living.

Mercer’s Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2008 is used to help multinational companies and governments determine living costs for their expatriate employees, who usually demand a relatively high quality of life.

Mercer’s survey covers 253 cities across six continents and measured the relative cost of over 200 items in each place, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.

To mark the launch of the all-new 7 Series, BMW presented its flagship model with a unique installation on the Red Square in Moscow, Russia. For two days, a real-life 2009 7-Series was hidden in 180,000 silver balls that filled a giant glass-and-acrylic hourglass, at almost twelve meters high (40 feet), that had been built right in front of the Kremlin on the Red Square of Moscow.

Before the car was officially unveiled, BMW’s all new 7-Series pictures were leaked out on the internet last week. Also, the official day of presentation was supposed to be the 7th of July – 7th day of the 7th month – but it eventually came one day later on the night of the 8th, in an extravagant ceremony !

As 400 invited guests watched, the shiny balls gradually fell down, one by one, thus revealing the BMW’s flagship model, in blue, in its full glory !

Caviar for patients recovering from a blood test, psychoanalysis at 10,000 dollars per hour: nothing is too much for ailing billionaires at the Neo Vita clinic in Moscow’s swishest suburb.

For the clinic’s founder, Artyom Tolokonin, ensuring good health for the capital’s super-rich inhabitants is even better for his pocket book.

The 33-year-old psychoanalyst says that about a dozen residents of the Rublyovka neighbourhood — dubbed Moscow’s Beverly Hills — are paying for year-round treatments costing as much as a million dollars (636,000 euros) a time. [...]

Visitors pass a police post and surveillance cameras, before having their street shoes clad in clean overshoes, and entering a hallway gently illuminated by liquid-like jets of light.

One of the new generation of skyscrapers central in Moscow’s International Business Centre is close to topping out.

Named the City Of Capitals the project consists of two multi purpose towers called Moscow and St Petersburg in reference to Russia’s two capital cities. They will stand at heights of 284 metres and 242 metres the towers are designed by American architectural firm NBBJ.

Inspired by the Russian constructivism of the 20th century the towers display a distinctive geometric form, which not only looks interesting but offers structural strength and gives large floor plates allowing for spacious apartments and offices which have stunning panoramic views.

The only drawback with City of Capitals which are big and dazzlingly modern enough to stand as landmarks in their own right in any other city in Europe is not their own design but that of some of the neighbouring towers such as the Russia Tower that are to distract the eye of a tourist.

The podiums the towers rise from feature rounded lines and concertinaed glass roofs, these will house retail and entertainment spaces. As the towers rise in a series of squares the vertical lines are highlighted with mosaics of dark and light terracotta adding both colour and texture to the facades, these are also used to emphasize the residential parts of the project.

Luxury is the watch-word in this project with the well being of workers, residents and visitors to the towers being paramount. They will be able to enjoy restaurants, cafes, cinemas, a 25 metre swimming pool with panoramic views of the Moskva River, spa and beauty facilities as well as high tech gym equipment.

The offices have been specified to a Grade A standard and apartments range from a Deluxe apartment approximately 1,019 square metres – 1,060 square metres to the President apartments which are approximately 2,155 square metres – 3,347 square metres.

Car parking will be arranged on several underground levels and offices will be accessed by the embankment, car park and retail levels, possibly to tempt workers into spending their hard earned wages before they have even earned them.