Office rents in Dubai have soared 30.7% during the past twelve months, making Dubai the tenth most expensive in the world, in fact, more expensive than New York's Manhattan, and could soon exceed those in the white hot Mumbai market, reports CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), a global commercial property services firm.

Mumbai rents had increased by just over 11.3% during the same period, and the city slipped down from the second to the fourth position in the world rankings.

The price per square foot this year in Dubai is $128.45, as against Mumbai at $210.97. An office for 30 people, based on 100 square feet per person, will now cost at $309,600 per year in Dubai, up from $294,960 about a year ago.

London's West End has once again been recorded as the most expensive office market in the world, followed by Moscow, Inner Central Five Wards of Mumbai, and Outer Central Five Wards of Tokyo.

On the whole, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EmeA) region dominated the list of world's fastest growing occupancy costs, accounting for five of the top ten, and nineteen out of the top fifty markets.

Worldwide, about 88% of the 173 office markets monitored, reported higher occupancy costs.

"Office occupancy costs are continuing to resist sluggish economic conditions, and the credit crunch, as they rise even faster than global inflation," said CBRE's global Chief Economist, Raymond Torto.

With the increase in cost being dominated by emerging markets, due to supple-demand imbalance, and dollar depreciation, the Class A office space is seriously lacking in few of these emerging markets.