Not just cigarettes and alcohol: why the ‘Oasis index’ and others like it offer real economic insights

Timothy Dykes/Unsplash Many Melburnians were aghast to learn their city had won a trophy no one wants: the most expensive night out in the world. At least, that’s according to the “Oasis index”, an annual metric from the research team at Deutsche Bank. The index tracks the cost of five beers and two packets of cigarettes, in US dollars, city by city. And yes, this was inspired by the lyrics of the song Cigarettes and Alcohol, from Oasis’s 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe. Melbourne’s Oasis…