SNB & CHF

The number of U.S. commercial foreclosures spiked to 635 in January 2024 from a low of 141 in May 2020 reports real estate data firm ATTOM. The January count was up 17% from the previous month and roughly twice as many as in January 2023. “Commercial property deals in the US are picking back up at deep discounts—and forcing lenders to face just how far real estate prices have fallen,” notes Sarah Holder on Bloomberg’s “Big Take” podcast.Bloomberg commercial real...

The sight of fresh snow is always invigorating to me, so I was happy to wake up the other day to a blanket of snow—roughly three inches—on my yard. I was less happy, though, to see the same blanket still covering the street in my neighborhood. Things took an even-more disheartening turn when, a few hours later around 10 a.m., I got to the main state road at the end of my street: still snow covered, despite the relatively meager (for this area) snowfall and the fact...

G.K. Chesterton is a somewhat controversial author in most libertarian circles. As an intelligent man who wisely predicted a century out so many of the problems we face today, he has garnered great respect among many who have read him. However, as a proponent of distributism, advocating ideas such as “the taxation of contracts so as to discourage the sale of small property to big proprietors and encourage the break-up of big property among small proprietors,” he has...

The Bureau of Economic Analysis released January figures for Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) today, including the price index based on that data.News headlines report the year-over-year percent change in the PCE price index: 2.4%. This gives the impression that price inflation is heading towards the Federal Reserve’s supposed target of 2%.But the data is released monthly, and this way of calculating inflation is slightly misleading. As Joseph...

Did you know that Switzerland has joined a handful of European countries that China is granting visa-free access to visit? Why? Mainly because China is trying to open up its economy after years of Covid isolation by facilitating more cross-border exchanges. Are you considering taking advantage of this? Beijing is also seeking closer ties with Europe to attract more visitors and foreign investment. Tap here to read more about Swiss-Chinese relations 👉...

A recent rash of libertarian-leaning right-wing podcasters’ rehashing of a shopworn takedown of socialism has bothered me to the point of launching into this essay. It goes something like “Why is this still a thing? When are they going to realize that IT DOESN’T WORK, and drop it?”This criticism deserves a closer look. Maybe socialism does too. By the way, I define the term as any economic paradigm that turns over the means of production to “society,” “the workers,”...

Originally published September 1977 in Libertarian Review.In any debate between a socialist and a free-market capitalist, all too often the socialist quickly puts the free-market advocate on the defensive, and the entire time is consumed by the free-market person fending off attacks on the ability of the market to prevent inequality, or business cycles, or even the ravages of affluence and "materialism." Being on the offensive, socialism emerges spotless and...

Gold price remains confined in a narrow band heading into the European session.  Hawkish Fed expectations underpin the USD and act as a headwind for the metal. The downside seems limited ahead of the crucial US PCE Price Index on Thursday.  Gold price (XAU/USD) extends its sideways consolidative price move around the 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) on Wednesday as traders await fresh catalyst before positioning for the next leg of a directional move. Hence, the...

Exactly 16 years ago, the Swiss government joined the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and others in recognising Kosovo’s independence from Serbia. February 27 became a joyous day for Kosovars in Switzerland but less so for Swiss-based Serbs. Around 250,000 people of Kosovo origin live in Switzerland. The bond between Kosovo and Switzerland remains strong, encompassing political and economic ties, as well as deep-rooted historical and human connections. 🔗Tap here to read...

Swiss goods enter Russia via third countries. KEYSTON Since the beginning of the Ukraine war, Swiss exports to countries close to Russia have increased significantly – which points to a possible evasion of sanctions. Shortly after the Russian attack on Ukraine, Western countries imposed sanctions on Russia. On February 28, 2022, Switzerland also reacted and adopted the EU sanctions. Since then, exports to Russia have been banned, with some exceptions such as...