Tag Archives: 3) Swiss Markets and News

Uncertainty about Switzerland’s framework agreement with the EU is fueling more company lobbying in Brussels. (Keystone) Swiss companies have sharply increased their lobbying in Brussels in the face of uncertain relations with the European Union. Switzerland has more companies lobbying in Brussels than many other European countries, writes the SonntagsBlick newspaper, citing the EU’s latest transparency registerexternal...

A Volkswagen employee maneuvers a steel coil in a factory in Emden, Germany The European Union is imposing limits on steel coming into the bloc from Saturday in response to US President Donald Trump’s metals tariffs. The measures will also affect Swiss steel exports to the EU. The EU said on Fridayexternal link that it is introducing new measures to prevent steel produced for the US market from flooding into Europe...

Dining out is less likely on a lower wage. (© KEYSTONE / GAETAN BALLY) The pay gap between men and women in Switzerland has increased slightly, amounting to hundreds of francs per month on average. Men earned 19.6% more pay than female colleagues in 2016, compared to a 19.5% difference in 2012. While some of this gap can be explained by length of service, additional qualifications and the like, in more than four out of...

Not quite 10% walk to work in Switzerland; more than half drive. Nine out of ten employees in Switzerland – or four million people total – commuted to work last year, most of them to another municipality, and most by car. In 2017, the average one-way Swiss commute was 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) and took 30.6 minutes, reported the Federal Statistical Officeexternal link on Tuesday. Some 71% of commuters traveled to...

© Industryviews Dreamstime.com - Click to enlarge Either at work, at a restaurant, on public transport or in a shop, nearly half of Swiss admit to stealing, according to a survey by moneyland.ch 49% of the 1,500 questioned in the survey admitted to pocketing something without paying. Young people admitted to being the most light fingered. Around a fifth of those aged 18-25 had taken something from the supermarket...

Novartis imports some 120 million packs of medicines into the UK each year. - Click to enlarge Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis says a no-deal Brexit could hurt patients and that it is stockpiling medicines in the UK to help ensure continuity of supply. In a press releaseexternal link on Friday, it said that after the British parliament’s rejection of Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, “the risk of UK...

Luxury watches are an important status symbol in China, as in many other parts of the world. - Click to enlarge The Sino-Swiss free trade agreement (FTA) is having only a limited effect on the fight against fake watches, according to a Swiss official. Steps taken by Beijing to counter fraud are often not being enforced by courts. Speaking to Swiss public broadcaster SRF, deputy director of the Swiss Federal Institute...

Switzerland with its Gotthard tunnel is a major transit country for goods vehicles travelling between northern and southern Europe. Swiss President and Finance Minister Ueli Maurer has signed two agreements with the UK as part of the government’s strategy to maintain smooth ties after Brexit. The agreements on road transport and non-life insurance were signed with UK Chancellor Philip Hammond at the World Economic Forum...

A worker assembles a coffee grinder at Schaetti, the holding company of Olympia Express, in Schwanden, Switzerland Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Switzerland are optimistic about export business at the start of 2019, a new survey has found, with over half expecting foreign sales to grow during the year. “The export climate will remain favourable for Swiss SMEs in 2019,” wrote the authors of a Switzerland...

© Pavalache Stelian | Dreamstime.com A recent survey suggests that half of Swiss residents are satisfied with their financial situation. 6% said they have trouble making ends meet. In addition, 28% expect their finances to improve in 2019. Fewer women (25%) are optimistic than men (33%). 18% expect their finances to worsen and 54% expect no change. Views varied significantly by age group. 40% of those under 36 expected...