SNB & CHF

Switzerland is a world leader not only in watchmaking, but also for crafting beautiful handmade music boxes. swissinfo.ch takes a peek inside the Reuge workshops at Sainte-Croix in the Jura mountains. The founder Charles Reuge began work in Geneva, where some of the first music boxes were made at the turn of the 19th century. Their principle remains the same today. A mechanical movement turns a cylinder or a metallic disk fitted with pins, which pluck the tuned teeth of a steel comb in a...

A new study says preserving ancient breeds of cows in Switzerland - like the Evolène - could help provide a future source of meat and milk as global warming kicks in. Adrienne Stettler has 20 Evolènes on her farm in Utzigen, canton Bern. swissinfo.ch paid them a visit.(Julie Hunt, swissinfo.ch) --- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). Its role is to report on Switzerland and to provide a Swiss perspective on international events. For more...

Zurich's new railway bridge will be the longest in operation when it's opened in December. It will be able to will bear the weight of 800-ton trains. (SRF/swissinfo.ch) --- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). Its role is to report on Switzerland and to provide a Swiss perspective on international events. For more articles, interviews and videos visit swissinfo.ch or subscribe to our YouTube channel: Website: http://www.swissinfo.ch...

This winter, there’s one Swiss ski resort where tourists won’t suffer from the effects of the strong Swiss franc: Grächen in canton Valais. (RTS/swisisnfo.ch) -- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). Its role is to report on Switzerland and to provide a Swiss perspective on international events. For more articles, interviews and videos visit swissinfo.ch or subscribe to our YouTube channel: Website: http://www.swissinfo.ch Channel:...

For a long time, the identity of a woman portrayed on the case of a watch made by Jaeger-LeCoultre remained a mystery. An extensive search of the identity of the Indian royal has revealed the most likely candidate. The hunt finally led to the tiny state of Tripura in north-eastern India. Interestingly, the last royal to rule Tripura was a woman. The death of the maharajah of Tripura Bir Bikram Kishore Debbaraman in 1947 - he built Tripura’s only airport - meant that his son Kirit Bikram...

The Federal Reserve delivered a hawkish hike.  The dot plot reflects expectations for four rate hikes in 2016.   There were no dissents.  This is important. It underscores the decisiveness of the decision.  There have been three voting Fed members that were thought to be likely dissents.    The Fed will also continue to reinvest maturing securities until the normalization process is well underway.  We think it may be an issue near mid-year at the earliest.  We recognize that some think...

(from my colleague Dr. Win Thin) Today’s Fitch downgrade is a stark reminder that Brazil continues to suffer from a toxic mix of high inflation, recession, low commodity prices, and heightened political uncertainty.  Because we see no end in sight for these negative factors, we believe Brazil assets will continue to underperform.POLITICAL OUTLOOK The impeachment process has begun, but it is not yet clear whether it can gain enough traction to actually topple President Rousseff.  We have...

There are many investors and observers who do not think the Fed ought to raise interest rates today.   The Fed's targeted inflation measure, the core PCE deflator, stood at 1.3%, well below the 2% target.   They see the fresh sell-off in oil prices and are more concerned disinflation than inflation.  Over the past week or so, more concern has been expressed about the sell-off in the high yield bond market.   Others are concerned about the strength of the dollar and the weakness abroad. ...

The much awaited Fed meeting is here.  A 25 bp increase in the Fed funds range to 25-50 bp is widely expected.  The near certainty of this contrasts to the high uncertainty of the immediate impact stocks, bonds, and the dollar.   There are five components of the Fed's decision that will command attention.  First, is the rate move itself.  This is the most straightforward for the components.   Second is the FOMC statement.  The economic assessment is unlikely to change much.   Part of the...

This Great Graphic shows how different measures of US equities perform in December by day for the past 20 years.  I got it as a tweet from Urban Carmel, who got it from the Stock Almanac.   Today is eleventh session of the month.  Equities typically rallied starting now in December.   Since 1994, the S&P 500 has fallen in the month of December five times (1996, 2002, 2005, 2007, and 2014).  Since 1994, seasonally, December is one of the best months for S&P 500 in terms of number...