le News

In 1941, George de Mestral, while hunting in the Jura, with his son and dogs, noticed how the plant burdock stuck with microscopic hooks to his trousers and to the ears of one of his dogs. Fifteen years later the strong-willed Vaud handy man had turned his observation into something: Velcro ®. Wild burdock_© Olga Budonna | Dreamstime.com He carried his hunting trip observation around in his head for ten years before realizing it could be used as an alternative to a zip, an earlier american...

Tribune de Genève. Rents have dropped across Switzerland, declining substantially in the Lake Geneva region, according the the property consulting firm Wüest Partner. © Tea | Dreamstime.com According to the firm, Swiss rents in the second quarter of 2016 were 1.6% lower than the same quarter in 2015. Geneva saw rents drop by 8.3% over the same period, while the region around Lake Geneva, known as the arc lémanique, saw a fall of 7.2%. Valais saw a similar decline of 5.2%. Landlords in Zurich...

Investec Switzerland. UBS Group AG Chief Executive Officer Sergio Ermotti pledged to continue cost cuts after profit at the wealth-management business fell and the securities unit was hurt by a slump in equities trading. Pretax profit rose 11 percent to 877 million Swiss francs ($883 million) from 788 million francs a year earlier on lower expenses, the Zurich-based bank said in a statement Friday. That compares with the 862 million-franc average of six analyst estimates...

Investec Switzerland. UBS Group AG Chief Executive Officer Sergio Ermotti pledged to continue cost cuts after profit at the wealth-management business fell and the securities unit was hurt by a slump in equities trading. Pretax profit rose 11 percent to 877 million Swiss francs ($883 million) from 788 million francs a year earlier on lower expenses, the Zurich-based bank said in a statement Friday. That compares with the 862 million-franc average of six analyst estimates...

Investec Switzerland. A weak performance from Swiss pharma giants pulled the Swiss Market Index down again this week after investors dropped stocks in the sector on lackluster earnings reports. The peripheral European stocks and Japan managed to buck the trend this week, global stock markets remain under pressure in the run up to US election. © Fahrner78 | Dreamstime.com Italian and Spanish markets were this week’s winners among global equity markets. Spain’s main stock...

Tribune de Genève. According to the NZZ am Sonntag, in September, Swiss supermarket Migros launched a new system which offers personalised discounts. The discount experiment will run for a year in stores in Geneva, Nyon, Bern and Zurich. © Hai Huy Ton That | Dreamstime.com What is it exactly? Those with Cumulus loyalty cards will receive special offers via an app on their phones or personalised discount coupons at check out. Algorithms crunch purchase history data associated with a customer’s...

Tribune de Genève. According to the NZZ am Sonntag, in September, Swiss supermarket Migros launched a new system which offers personalised discounts. The discount experiment will run for a year in stores in Geneva, Nyon, Bern and Zurich. © Hai Huy Ton That | Dreamstime.com What is it exactly? Those with Cumulus loyalty cards will receive special offers via an app on their phones or personalised discount coupons at check out. Algorithms crunch purchase history data associated with a customer’s...

Tribune de Genève. According to Tribune de Genève, at 16:44 yesterday, an earthquake measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale, shook Valais. The quake’s centre was 6km north of the town of Sierre at a depth of 8.3 kilometres. The quake, which lasted several seconds was felt throughout central Valais, a canton known for famous resorts such as Zermatt, Verbier and Crans-Montana. © Ermess | Dreamstime.com Local police received several calls from concerned residents, particularly in the region of...

Investec Switzerland. Ireland is facing another tax battle with the European Union and this time it will have to fight its own corner. © Dreamshot | Dreamstime.com Less than two months after the European Union ordered Ireland to claw back a record 13 billion euros ($14.2 billion) from Apple Inc., saying the nation illegally allowed the iPhone maker to reduce its tax rate, the European Commission will propose legislation for a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base on...

Investec Switzerland. Syngenta AG shares tumbled on concern that China National Chemical Corp.’s $43 billion takeover of the Swiss herbicide and pesticide maker risks regulatory delays in the European Union. © Perolsson | Dreamstime.com ChemChina didn’t submit so-called remedies in the EU’s early-stage review of the deal by the Oct. 21 deadline, the European Commission’s press office said by phone on Monday. Companies often decide to put off making commitments — such as...