Tag Archives: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

Switzerland has made progress in reforming tax rates for multinational companies but still has work to do when it comes to turning a blind eye to tax avoidance. In an interview in the French-language paper Le Temps, Paul Tang, who led a delegation of European parliamentarians visiting Bern last week, said that Switzerland had made more progress than the European Union when it came to bringing tax rates for multinational companies in line with other countries....

Schwarzenbach (left) leaving a court building back in 2017. © Keystone / Walter Bieri A court in Zurich has rejected an appeal by the renowned Swiss art collector and financier Urs Schwarzenbach in two cases of tax evasion in connection with the import of works of art. The court also decided to increase from CHF8.5 million ($8.5 million) to 9.6 million the fines compared with a previous court verdict, it was announced on Monday. Judges also massively increased...

The embattled Swiss bank Credit Suisse plans to shed 540 jobs in Switzerland by the end of the year, Chief Executive Officer Ulrich Körner told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper. In the interview he gave more details on last week’s restructuring announcement. “We will cut 2,700 jobs worldwide, including 20% in Switzerland, by the end of the fourth quarter of 2022,” Körner told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper on October 30. On Thursday the bank unveiled major...

Swiss hotels and holiday apartments are raising their prices by around 5% this winter, largely due to higher energy prices. Ski passes are also likely to go up by a similar amount, a newspaper reports. According to a survey by the Hotelleriesuisse association, seen by NZZ am Sonntag, most Swiss hotels are planning to pass on the higher costs of electricity, gas and oil to their guests. Three-quarters of all hotels expect to raise prices this winter compared to the...

Credit Suisse is banking on petrodollars from Saudi Arabia to shore up its precarious situation. Keystone / Oliver Berg Swiss bank Credit Suisse has returned to the Middle East to shore up its finances amid mounting losses and a deteriorating balance sheet. In the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, built up a 5% stake in Switzerland’s second largest bank. Now the Saudi National Bank has accepted...

Switzerland’s budget faces a sizeable deficit despite fewer pandemic costs than expected. Keystone / Gaetan Bally The coronavirus pandemic will have a lighter impact on Swiss state finances than previously feared but will still put the country’s budget in the red, the finance ministry forecasts. Measures to support companies and workers during the pandemic were expected to cost CHF7.4 million ($7.4 billion) during the last forecast in June. But on Wednesday, the...

Credit Suisse is attempting to recover from a catastrophic sequence of business reversals and scandals. © Keystone / Walter Bieri Swiss bank Credit Suisse is shedding thousands of jobs, selling off parts of its business and raising billions in extra capital in a bid to reverse a downward spiral in fortunes. The bank announced on Thursday that it will slim down from a current headcount of 52,000 to 43,000 by the end of 2025. The job cuts will start this year with...

Federal buildings and other infrasructure are to be installed with photovoltaic panels in the next 12 years. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally The Swiss government has pledged to install solar panels on as many federal buildings as possible to help boost the production of energy from renewable sources. On Wednesday, the government said it wants solar energy generation to rise from 13 gigawatt hours to 87 gigawatt hours in Switzerland. To help achieve this target, it has...

Bling on the landscape? Voters in Geneva will be able to have their say on adverts like this © Keystone / Christian Beutler The inhabitants of Vernier, a municipality in Geneva, are set to have their say on banning advertising billboards. A referendum launched against a new law banning this form of communication has collected 2,300 signatures, the co-chairman of the referendum committee, said on Monday. A total of 1,921 valid signatures had been required. Last...

The Swiss government has proposed amending the Tobacco Act to introduce a new tax for electronic cigarettes. Parliament has been asked to back the proposal, which is forecast to bring in around CHF13.8 million ($13.8 million) in extra tax revenues per year. The proposed tax rate for reusable e-cigarettes is CHF0.20 per millilitere of liquid containing nicotine. For single-use e-cigarettes, the government is aiming for CHF1 per millilitre of liquid – regardless...