Tag Archives: 3) Swiss Markets and News

The energy crisis is causing electricity prices to soar across Europe, including in Switzerland. But the impact on the country is very unequal because of specific characteristics of its market. The sharp rise in electricity prices has delivered a heavy blow to the European market, which has been fully liberalised since 2007. States are being forced to delve deep into their coffers to support households and businesses. Voices questioning the wisdom of fully opening...

Senior Credit Suisse executives spent the weekend reassuring large clients, counterparties and investors about the Swiss bank’s liquidity and capital position in response to concerns raised about its financial strength. Executives hit the phones after spreads on the bank’s credit default swaps, which offer protection against a company defaulting, rose sharply on Friday, indicating investor worries over its financial health. “The teams are actively engaging with...

Electricity consumption in Switzerland remained at normal levels last month despite a government appeal for households and industry to make savings. On August 31, ministers urged the population to voluntarily reduce consumption ahead of anticipated shortages this winter. Recommended measures included turning heating down and switching off lights. Both the Tages Anzeiger and Neue Zürcher Zeitung showed figures on Saturday that suggests this plea has so far fallen...

Landlords and tenants are opposing government calls to reduce household heating to 19 degrees Celsius, warning it might spark a flurry of lawsuits. The Swiss Real Estate Association, which represents landlords, warns that turning down the heating in rented accommodation could result in a legal backlash. The 19 degree heating target was a specific measure contained in a voluntary energy saving campaign launched by the government in August. But legal experts point...

Not one hacker managed to penetrate the Swiss Post’s e-voting system during a security test, according to Swiss Post. The system withstood 60,000 attacks. Some 3,400 hackers probed the system to find security gaps, Swiss Post said on Wednesday. No findings of medium, major or critical severity were received. One finding had a severity level of low. Swiss Post said this did not affect any safety-relevant aspects but was fixed. In the so-called intrusion test,...

The biggest two Swiss Banks have each been fined $200 million (CHF199 million) as part of a large-scale US investigation into the failure to preserve electronic communications. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said in separate statements on Tuesday that they had fined 16 financial firms a combined total of $1.8 billion after staff had discussed deals on their personal devices and apps. Beyond the two...

Parliament wants to deal a fairer set of cards to Swiss pensioners. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Pensions in Switzerland should in future be topped up to fully account for the rising cost of consumer goods, parliament has agreed. Parliament on Monday voted to modify the way payment adjustments are calculated from 2023. Currently, top ups take both inflation and rising wages into account. From the start of next year at the latest, payments should focus purely on...

Troubled Swiss bank Credit Suisse has sought to quieten rampant speculation about its upcoming strategic revamp following leaks to the media and concerns of its staff. The bank is due to announce restructuring details when it announces its third quarter earnings results on October 27. On Monday Credit Suisse took the unusual move of issuing a statement ahead of its planned strategic review update next month, mentioning a “high level of media and market...

While the pension reform, which raises the retirement age for women from 64 to 65, was narrowly accepted in Sunday’s vote, the Swiss Abroad were more strongly in favour. The majority of voting expats were also in favour of abolishing factory farming and withholding tax unlike resident citizens. My specialty is telling stories, and decoding what happens in Switzerland and the world from accumulated data and statistics. An expatriate in Switzerland for several...

Voters in Switzerland’s biggest canton have overwhelmingly approved a new article to promote a cleaner and more efficient use of resources. Just under 90% of Zurich citizens on Sunday said yes to the idea, which the cantonal government proposed as an alternative to an initiative by the young Green Party. All political parties were in favour of the idea. The canton’s constitution will therefore be adapted to include an article calling on authorities to create...