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At 1 June 2017, 3,650 empty homes, of which 2,655 were for rent and 995 for sale, were on the market in Vaud. © Sam74100 | Dreamstime This brought the vacancy rate to 0.9%, a rise of 0.1% compared to the year before. This rise follows an increase of 0.1% in 2016 from a rate of 0.7% in 2015. The market is considered balanced when the vacancy rate reaches 1.5%. The last time it was above this mark in Vaud was in 1999. Vacancy rates varied significantly across the canton. The five regions with...

A study requested by Credit Suisse and Pro Juventute shows how much pocket money habits vary across Switzerland. © Kirsty Begg | Dreamstime Of the 14,000 adults surveyed a clear majority said it was their job to teach their children how to deal with money. Parents in the lowest earning category (less than CHF 50,000 p.a.) placed greater emphasis on teaching their children than those it the highest income bracket of over CHF 200,000 p.a. The most important lessons Swiss parents focus on...

The average number of hours spent on domestic tasks by men in Switzerland rose by 10% between 2010 and 2016 according to a report by Switzerland’s federal statistical office. © Masta4650 | Dreamstime The 17.9 hours dedicated to domestic work by an average man every week was 36% less than that of an average woman. Men however were not sitting around twiddling their thumbs. The 27.3 hours spent by men on paid work was 64% higher than the 16.6 hours women invested in paid work. After adding in...

20 Minutes. Low-THC cannabis cigarettes will soon be available in the Swiss supermarket chain Coop. Heimat cigarettes_source Facebook Products with less than 1% tétrahydrocannabinol (THC) are not illegal in Switzerland, however their rapid rise in popularity has created controversy. Selling such products in supermarkets is a significant step in the product’s evolution. Swiss cigarette manufacturer Heimat has come up with a new product which combines tobacco with low-THC cannabis. This new...

The Economist magazine’s 6-monthly Big Mac index shows the Swiss franc to be even more overvalued than it was in January 2017. © Pamela Mcadams The index, which compares the US$ price of a Big Mac around the world places Switzerland at the top with a price of US$ 6.74. This is 27.2% more expensive than the United States where the same burger costs US$ 5.30. In January 2017, the same burger in Switzerland cost US$ 6.35 and US$ 5.06 in the US making the Swiss one 25.5% more pricey. The cheapest...

The Economist magazine’s 6-monthly Big Mac index shows the Swiss franc to be even more overvalued than it was in January 2017. © Pamela Mcadams The index, which compares the US$ price of a Big Mac around the world places Switzerland at the top with a price of US$ 6.74. This is 27.2% more expensive than the United States where the same burger costs US$ 5.30. In January 2017, the same burger in Switzerland cost US$ 6.35 and US$ 5.06 in the US making the Swiss one 25.5% more pricey. The cheapest...

20 Minutes. A court in the canton of St. Gallen sentenced a cheese vendor to three years in prison, half of it behind bars. © Marco Guidi The man was judged guilty of fraudulently using Switzerland’s world-famous Emmental cheese brand and other crimes. In addition to prison, the cheese seller was ordered to pay CHF 1 million in relation to illegal cheese sales – 3,500 tonnes of cheese pretending to be Emmental was sold – and other forms of fraud including breach of trust, unlawful business...

U.S. index futures point slightly lower open. Asian shares rose while stocks in Europe fell as energy producers got caught in a downdraft in oil prices and reversed an earlier gain after Goldman unexpectedly warned that WTI could slide below $40 absent "show and awe" from OPEC. The dollar rose, hitting a four-month high against the yen and bonds and top emerging market currencies were back under pressure on Tuesday, following last week’s hawkish rhetoric from central bankers. Nonetheless,...

Via FinancialSense.com, One of the world's most powerful supercomputers, retrofitted for trading the stock market, appears to be betting on a crash in the months ahead. The Financial Crisis Observatory (FCO) at ETH Zurich released its latest Global Bubble Status Report on July 1st. As we discussed with FCO’s director, Didier Sornette, on our podcast in May, they use one of the world’s leading supercomputers to monitor global markets each day for two distinct bubble-like...

A survey shows that 71% of those working in German-speaking Switzerland would change jobs if they could. Dream jobs vary significantly by gender. © Digitalstormcinema | Dreamstime.com The survey, conducted by Marketagent.com on behalf of XING Switzerland, questioned around 1,000 employees in German-speaking Switzerland between the ages of 18 and 65. If age and and education could be ignored, 71% of the group said they would switch jobs. Dream jobs for men, in order of popularity, include:...