Tag Archives: 3) Swiss Markets and News

© Marekusz | Dreamstime.com According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Switzerland has economically navigated the Covid-19 pandemic well so far. In 2020, the Swiss economy shrank by 2.9%, far less than many other advanced European economies. France (-8.2%), Germany (-4.9%), Italy (-8.9%) and the UK (-9.9%) all performed far worse. According to the IMF, the impact of the pandemic in Switzerland was cushioned by solid public and household finances, competitive...

© Hideko1979 | Dreamstime.com The French region of Bourgogne-Franche Comté has contacted several Swiss cantons and asked them if they would take Covid patients, according to RTS. Jacques Gerber, the minister of health in the canton of Jura told RTS that there had been a request from France to prepare in case French hospitals become overloaded. New cases have only been rising moderately in Switzerland since mid March. In France the number has risen steeply, reaching...

Shareholders confirmed the re-election of the Chairman and the members of the Board of Directors. They elected Claudia Böckstiegel and Patrick Firmenich as new members of the Board. Shareholders approved a dividend distribution of USD 0.37 (gross) in cash per share. They also approved the new share buyback program 2021–2024. Shareholders approved the proposals relating to the remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors and the Group Executive Board and...

Mobility plans to complement its electric car fleet with a network of charging stations. Keystone / Obs/mobility Car-sharing company Mobility says it will electrify its entire fleet of 3,000 vehicles and build a network of e-charging stations by 2030. On Thursday, the company saidExternal link its first 300 e-charging stations should be operational within three years. Mobility, which is aims to be climate neutral as a company by 2040, has pledged that its fleet will...

Coveted stuff: a jab of Covid-19 vaccine, in this case from Pfizer/BioNTech. Keystone / Klaus-dietmar Gabbert As of this week, Switzerland can no longer import Covid vaccines from the European Union (EU) without a special license. Officials in Bern have asked to be granted an exception to the stricter conditions. According to the SonntagsBlick newspaper, at the end of March the EU removed Switzerland – along with 16 other countries – from a list of states not subject...

The $2 trillion (CHF1.89 trillion) infrastructure investment programme unveiled by Biden on Wednesday is intended to help improve the ailing national power grid, water systems, schools, bridges and road networks. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved US President Joe Biden’s major infrastructure plan is raising high hopes for Swiss firms in the construction and building industry. Although first contracts are expected to go to local firms, experts...

As the price of food soars in Brazil, many Nestlé employees there are struggling to feed themselves. Keystone / Peter Klaunzer The Swiss multinational is celebrating 100 years in Brazil but its poorest workers face food voucher cuts amid rising food prices caused by the pandemic. After a century of doing business in Brazil – Nestlé’s fifth largest market with CHF2.79 billion ($2.94 billion) in sales in 2020 – the Swiss food manufacturer faces the discontent of trade...

Children working at a brick factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2019. Switzerland has joined a global platform to combat child labour, forced labour and human trafficking. Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. Economics Minister Guy Parmelin and the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, have concluded an agreement on development cooperation. Parmelin, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this...

Last year a government report indicated that the law on Swissness contributes more than CHF1.4 billion ($1.48 billion) a year to the Swiss economy. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Major industry associations have joined forces with public agencies to combat free-riders who abuse the “Swiss brand” abroad. The association for Swissness enforcement is intended to foster coordinated action against the wrongful use abroad of Swiss indications of source. It comprises 13 members,...

Most of the big Swiss textile machinery companies have local production in China and only export high-end components from Switzerland. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Amid allegations of forced labour involving Uyghur and other minorities in the garment supply chain, the Swiss textile machinery sector faces thorny questions about its ties to and reliance on China. My specialty is telling stories, and decoding what happens in Switzerland and the world from accumulated...