The Swiss franc has started to appreciate in value against other currencies, including the euro, once again. One knock-on effect of the escalating trade war between the United States and China is that the Swiss franc is becoming more attractive for investors – putting pressure on the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to come to the defence of the safe haven currency. For much of July a euro bought at least CHF1.10. But the...
Read More »US tourists flocking to Switzerland amid economic boom
Admiring the view above Lake Lucerne, central Switzerland. American visitors to Switzerland have increased by over 40% in five years and represent a major growth motor for the tourism industry, annual statistics show. Chinese and Indian tourists are often seen as the future of Swiss tourism, the SonntagsZeitung and Le Matin Dimanche newspapers reported at the weekend. However, they say, “North America is the real growth...
Read More »Glencore suffers $350m hit as cobalt prices decline
Congolese diaspora protesting against Glencore last summer. Glencore has taken a $350 million hit because of falling cobalt prices as the problems facing its African copper business continue to pile up. The Switzerland-based miner and commodity trader has been grappling with a string of issues in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it operates two copper mines, and in Zambia, where it owns another asset. Dozens of...
Read More »Nestlé invests CHF99 million in factory expansion in Indonesia
The ground breaking ceremony of Nestlé’s fourth production plant in Indonesia in 2013. The Swiss food giant has announced plans to invest CHF99 million (around $100 million) to expand three factories in Indonesia. The goal is to increase Nestlé’s production capacity in the country by 25%, according to a company announcement on Wednesday. The recipients of the funds will be three production plants in Karawang (West...
Read More »Switzerland’s first integrated crypto asset exchange launched
Smart Valor was launched in 2017 and is based in ‘Swiss Crypto Valley’ of Zug near Zurich. Smart Valor, the country’s first integrated cryptocurrency exchange offering custody, trading and brokerage, has gone live with nine crypto-fiat trading pairs. The assets on Zug-based platformexternal link, that was launched in 2017 as part of the Thomson Reuters Incubator, includes crypto currencies and security tokens. For the...
Read More »Switzerland assists Japanese probe into Carlos Ghosn
A visitor to Switzerland: Carlos Ghosn attending the 2018 World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland Canton Zurich’s public prosecutor is assisting the Japanese authorities in an inquiry related to bank accounts associated with Carlos Ghosn, the former leading auto executive. Tokyo prosecutors sent a request for legal assistance to Switzerland in January, a spokesperson for the country’s Federal Office of Justice...
Read More »Lucerne Considers Coach Tax, other Measures to Manage Tourist Influx
Lucerne, with its iconic Chapel Bridge, is a major tourist attraction for visitors who often don’t spend the night in the city. One of the most popular destinations in Switzerland is reviewing its tourism strategy and mulling introducing coach fees in a bid to curb traffic woes and other disruptions caused by the large number of tourists it welcomes. The vast majority of visitors to Lucerne, whose tally surpasses 9...
Read More »Federal Court to give verdict on UBS tax evasion case
The Swiss Federal Court is based in Lausanne - Click to enlarge The Swiss Federal Court is to decide on Friday whether Swiss bank UBS should handover data on its French clients to Paris tax authorities as part of a crackdown on suspected tax evasion. The decision has been described as key for Swiss banking circles. In May 2016, the French tax authorities requested administrative assistance from the...
Read More »Expat Swiss Celebrated at Historic Winegrower’s Festival
Clad in costumes or red and white, the colours of the Swiss flag, these amateur actors took part in a historical parade ahead of the Fête des Vignerons earlier this year in Vevey. - Click to enlarge The expatriate Swiss community has been attending the once-in-a-lifetime Fête des Vignerons, currently taking place on the shores of Lake Geneva. A delegation of Swiss citizens living across the world, including leading...
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