SNB & CHF

Swiss International Air Lines is a subsidiary of German group Lufthansa. (Keystone / Ennio Leanza) The Swiss aviation sector, including the airlines SWISS and Edelweiss, is set to receive financial aid of almost CHF1.9 billion to help it through the liquidity crisis caused by Covid-19. Some CHF1.275 billion ($1.31 billion) is directly for the two airlines, while up to CHF600 million will be for other companies vital to the functioning of the sector, the government...

Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world, but motor fuel has grown increasingly scarce in the past year due to US sanctions aimed at ousting President Nicolas Maduro (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) Several Swiss companies and banks have found themselves in the line of fire as the United States ramps up pressure on the Venezuelan government. Washington has sanctioned numerous top officials for money laundering and drug...

Dollar softness this week will take some pressure off of the foreign currencies but it’s too early to sound the all clear.  This piece focuses on how  central banks around the world may be intervening to influence their currencies.  Most of the world, particularly EM, is grappling with supporting weak currencies but a select few are dealing with stronger currencies. This is a very opaque process and so we are simply making our best guesses.  As April reserves data...

Government restrictions on production are driving prices up as unemployment drives them down. It’s impossible to say now whether price inflation or price deflation will be the predominant factor in the crisis’s next phase. This Audio Mises Wire is generously sponsored by Christopher Condon. Narrated by Millian Quinteros. Original Article: “Why the Current Unemployment Is Worse Than the Great Depression “ You Might Also...

According to a popular way of thinking, monopolies undermine the efficient functioning of the market economy by being able to influence the prices and the quantity of products. Consequently, this undermines the well-being of individuals in the economy. By this way of thinking, the inefficiency emerges because of the deviation from the ideal state of the market as depicted by the “perfect competition” framework. The “Perfect Competition” Framework In the world of...

http://financialrepressionauthority.com/2020/05/01/the-roundtable-insight-charles-hugh-smith-on-how-covid-19-will-affect-jobs-and-the-economy/

http://financialrepressionauthority.com/2020/05/01/the-roundtable-insight-charles-hugh-smith-on-how-covid-19-will-affect-jobs-and-the-economy/

The massive set of stimulus measures rolled out last month by the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve has left many Americans wanting more… and politicians scheming for new ways to dole out additional trillions in cash. Most taxpayers have already received their $1,200 “stimulus” payments. However, that one-time payment will do little to repair the long-term financial health of the 26 million (and rising) who are newly unemployed. And it surely won’t bail out all...

Some of around 600 cows climb the Glattalp last year, watched by spectators (Keystone) The traditional driving of cows up to mountain pastures for the summer will still take place this year in Appenzell, northeastern Switzerland, despite the coronavirus pandemic. However, the processions will not be publicised so as not to attract tourists and spectators. From the beginning of May to mid-June, farmers march hundreds of thousands of cows from their valley farms to...

© Jan Gajdosik | Dreamstime.com On 29 April 2020, Switzerland’s government announced plans to allow schools and other establishments to reopen on Monday 11 May 2020. From 11 May 2020, shops, restaurants, markets, museums, libraries, primary and lower secondary schools and sports training centres will be allowed to reopen. In addition, public transport will operate according to the standard timetable, announced the government. The easing is conditional on the...