SNB & CHF

Of all the areas that economics students need to master, counterfactual reasoning is near the top of the list. Counterfactual reasoning is outlining and comparing the differences and similarities between two alternatives. While everyone uses counterfactual reasoning, such as choosing what to have for lunch, economists look at deeper and more remote consequences. A typical example that students are asked to examine is the effects of price controls — what happens when...

The 100th Swiss Abroad Congress took place in Lucerne. For many participants at this year’s congress, the connections they make are invaluable. For some, sharing Swiss democracy abroad and taking part in democracy at home is a key topic of discussion. But all agree that the Swiss Abroad provide a service, both at home and abroad. Here are some voices out of Lucerne, from the Swiss around the world. --- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation...

This first appeared in The Libertarian Forum, Vol VI, NO.6-7, June-July,1972, following the attempted assassination of Presidential candidate George Wallace.John F. Kennedy; Malcolm X; Martin Luther King; Robert F. Kennedy; and now George Corley Wallace: the litany of political assassinations and attempts in the last decade rolls on. (And we might add: General Edwin Walker, and George Lincoln Rockwell. In each of these atrocities, we are fed with a line of cant from...

Switzerland is donating used trams to cities in Ukraine struggling from the effects of the war with Russia. Bern will be delivering 11 trams, and is currently training engineers from Ukraine to drive and maintain them. SWI swissinfo.ch met them at the tram workshop in the Swiss capital. #ukraine #trams #disabilities --- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). Its role is to report on Switzerland and to provide a Swiss perspective on...

In a world full of hatred for the free market, the people calling for the nationalization of industry aren’t scarce. Despite their political popularity, nationalizations are terrible for economies and represent a stepping stone on the path to destitution and collapse. In exchange for the temporary gain achieved by expropriating the property of others, countries sacrifice the confidence of doing business in their nation.Nationalization stems from the error that the...

Jury duty assignment prevents a more comprehensive note, but here is a snapshot. Overview: The dollar is broadly lower, and stocks are under pressure. Comments by a Japanese official, which did not appear to break new ground, coupled with Trump's interview in BusinessWeek, where he was critical that Japan was benefiting from a weak yen, despite having apparently spent some $80 bln this year trying to stop it from falling, may have been the trigger. The dollar has...

On December 5, 1996, Chairman of the Fed Alan Greenspan offered that stock prices may be too high, thus risking a correction that could result in an economic fallout. He wondered out loud if the market had reached a state of “irrational exuberance.” Over the past few months, we have seen the same term, irrational exuberance, used to describe the current state of the stock market. To gain perspective on the future, let’s compare the market environment that prompted...

Within minutes of the July 13 attempted assassination of Donald Trump, observers were asking how the assassin managed to gain a clear shot of Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show Grounds near Butler, Pennsylvania. Since then, the question remains unanswered, but many allegations about the shooting have emerged. For example, multiple sources plausibly contend that both local police and the Secret Service had spotted the armed shooter—on a nearby roof with a...

17.07.2024 – In 2023, 4.9 million cubic metres of timber were harvested in Switzerland, a decrease of almost 6% compared to the previous year. There was a noticeable decline in sawlogs (–12%) and the harvests of industrial roundwood (–1%) and chopped wood (–5%). Meanwhile, the proportion of wood harvested for alternative fuel options (wood chips) continued to grow (+5%) and take up a larger share ‒ around 30% ‒ of the total harvest. The share of fuel wood in the...

On Saturday evening, former president and 2024 frontrunner Donald Trump survived an attempted assassination at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The attack was utterly shocking, not only because a would-be assassin was able to get so close to Trump with a rifle but because of how close he was to success.The rally started off like any other. After his long walkout to the song “Proud to Be an American,” the former president began speaking just after 6:05 p.m....