Honolulu ranked as the 25th most expensive city in the world in a cost of living survey by ECA International, a firm that helps companies determine salaries for employees being assigned overseas.

Honolulu was the second-most expensive U.S. city after Manhattan, which ranked 17th on the list. ECA said a rallying dollar last year pushed up cost of living in U.S. cities compared with many of the other 370 cities surveyed. Russia's ruble fell against the dollar, resulting in Moscow coming in at No. 23 compared with fifth a year earlier.

Hawai'i's capital had ranked 88th in ECA's 2008 survey, which compares 125 consumer goods and services commonly purchased by international assignees.

Topping the list this year was Luanda, Angola. ECA said certain items and brands preferred by international workers can be very expensive in locations where they are not readily available.

The next four spots were occupied by Tokyo, Nagoya, Yokohama and Kobe in Japan.

ECA said the strengthening of Asian currencies was the main factor in the region being more expensive than it was a year ago.

Maseru, Lesotho, was the cheapest location in the survey. ECA said disparities in living costs in Africa can be largely explained by the strength of local currencies and the availability of goods and services.

Other U.S. cities making ECA's top 50 list were New York City outside of Manhattan (No. 31), Los Angeles (No. 38) and Washington, D.C. (No. 46).