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Recently, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) unveiled the new 100 franc banknote. Only one note missing – © Janusz Pieńkowski | Dreamstime.comThe note’s design is inspired by Switzerland’s tradition of humanitarianism, represented on the note by water. The note remains blue but is much smaller than the existing one, making it easier to fit into wallets. The note is the last one in Switzerland’s ninth series of notes to be updated. Updating the series began in April 2016 with the...

A deal agreed between EFTA and the South American Mercosur bloc, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay, with a combined population of 260 million, is close to signing. © Tomas Griger | Dreamstime.comEFTA includes Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Under the deal, 95% of Switzerland’s CHF 3.6 million annual exports to the bloc would be tariff free. The deal is important because the EU recently agreed a similar Mercosur deal, so this deal will maintain...

A majority of the candidates putting themselves forward for election as federal parliamentarians on 20 October 2019 favour raising Switzerland’s retirement age to 67, according to a survey done by Smartvote and reported in the newspaper NZZ am Sonntag. © Epicstock | Dreamstime.comThis could produce a parliamentary majority on the issue after the federal election. Switzerland’s official retirement age has moved into political focus as the country’s pay-as-you-go state pension system...

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute recently deciphered the structure of the CC chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7), a signaling protein. © Bogdan Hoda | Dreamstime.comCancer cells use CCR7 to guide themselves into the lymphatic system, spreading cancer throughout the body. The resulting secondary tumors, called metastases, are responsible for most cancer deaths. This new understanding of CCR7 is a break through that forms a foundation for developing drugs that could lead to treatments...

To anyone familiar with Swiss prices, the results of Eurostats’ 2018 European meat price comparison will come as no surprise. © Vadim Lerner | Dreamstime.comThe study compares the average meat price across 38 European countries to the average meat price across the EU (EU-28 nations). Meat includes beef and veal, pork, lamb, mutton and goat, poultry, other meats and edible offal, delicatessen and other meat preparations. At the bottom of the price ranking was Montenegro where meat...

Work-related stress is affecting more and more people in Switzerland, according to a study published by the Federal Statistical Office. © Ocusfocus | Dreamstime.comIn 2012, 18% said they felt stressed at work most of the time. By 2017, the same figure had risen to 21%. Nine potential drivers of on-the-job stress were looked at. Only 11% said they faced none of them, while 50% reported being exposed to at least three, up from 46% in 2012. Those between 15 and 29 (58%) and those working...

In the second quarter of 2019, the percentage of Switzerland’s population working rose by 1.1% and the percentage unemployed fell to 4.2%, based on the higher International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) measure. © Pressahotkey | Dreamstime.comIn the second quarter of 2019, 5.1 million people were working in Switzerland, 60% of the population. The number working rose 1.1% compared to the previous year, particularly among women (+2.0%). Employment rose 0.3% among men. The number of...

Swiss healthcare is expensive and most of it is paid directly by individuals (69%). Only the US has a more expensive healthcare system, according to Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office. © Ginasanders | Dreamstime.comThe political pressure on Switzerland’s government to address the problem has been intensifying for some time. This week, the federal government announced nine measures to cut healthcare costs that it expects could save hundreds of millions of francs annually. The...

Swiss healthcare is typically ranked the world’s second most expensive, as a percentage of GDP, after the US. © Tero Vesalainen | Dreamstime.comIn Switzerland, compulsory health insurance premiums cover 37% of healthcare costs. Much of the rest is covered by tax payers and non-reimbursable out-of-pocket payments by individuals. As part of a plan to reduce costs, this week, the health insurer Groupe Mutuel, launched a new lower cost plan which requires its clients to go to the...

In a recent comparison of taxi fares across Europe, Geneva and Zurich were the most expensive. ©  Corepics Vof | Dreamstime.comIn the study, which focused on the total cost of a taxi journey from the airport to the centre of town, Geneva (€36 – CHF40) and Zurich (€63 – CHF70) fared better than Milan (€105) and London (€104), which had the highest total journey costs. However, this is only because Zurich and Geneva airports are close to the city centre. The per-kilometre taxi costs in...