Tag Archives: Business

The Swiss agriculture sector is “vulnerable” to competition, says the WTO. (Keystone) The European Union and the United States have criticised Switzerland for the over-protection of its agricultural sector. Responding to the questions raised at the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO), Switzerland said it would make an effort to ease protections, on condition that other member states do likewise. The statements...

A majority of commentators in Swiss newspapers are pleased with voters’ decision to withdraw from nuclear power and promote renewable energies, even if the government’s energy strategy leaves many open questions. A big win for the Swiss energy minister - Click to enlarge The Basler Zeitung sees a “change of direction with numerous open questions” following Sunday’s vote (58% of voters) in favour of Energy...

The numbers of farms in Switzerland has halved since 1980 - Click to enlarge The trend for fewer but larger farms continued in Switzerland last year, with the total number dropping by 990 to 52,263. While small and conventionally farmed businesses were throwing in the towel, organic agriculture flourished.  The number of jobs in farming dropped 1.3% to 153,400, of which two-thirds were full-time, the Federal...

The Syngenta deal is one of a trio of megamergers (Keystone) Syngenta, the Swiss agribusiness group which is being acquired by ChemChina in the biggest foreign takeover by a Chinese company, will help Beijing modernise China’s farm sector while simultaneously remaining firmly a “western company”, its chairman has said. Michel Demaré told The Financial Times that, under its new owners, Syngenta would become “a partner of...

A pack of wolves invade Wall Street to promote the movie The real “Wolf of Wall Street“, Jordan Belfort, who was immortalised by Hollywood after serving jail time for stock market fraud, will be teaching sales techniques to business people in Zurich. Not everyone is pleased to see a convicted criminal passing on his secrets. Belfort is due to give a motivational talk in Zurich on May 13 to an audience stumping up CHF799...

Fake news: the role of social media remains controversial. (Keystone) Remain vigilant, continue to monitor, but no need for concerted federal action. This was the conclusion of a cabinet report Wednesday on social media and the problems it can provoke, including “fake news” and distorting public opinion. The cabinet decided that, for now, more regulation is not the solution. The phenomena of fake news and alternative...

UN experts estimate pesticides cause 200,000 deaths a year, 99% of which occur in developing countries (Keystone) In the wake of a Chinese takeover of the Swiss agribusiness group Syngenta, a Swiss advocacy group raises concerns about Switzerland’s regulatory role. Switzerland exports two powerful herbicides, atrazine and paraquat, to developing countries. However, these products, manufactured by Basel giant Syngenta,...

Switzerland will receive most of the money paid by the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) to a man who provided the state with stolen Credit Suisse client data, it has been confirmed. The CDs of stolen data and now the spy affair have tested German-Swiss relations - Click to enlarge NRW’s finance ministry paid €2.5 million (CHF2.7 million) in February 2010 for the CD, which contained tax details of Credit...

Building a transport tunnel through the Alps requires a lot of technical know-how (Keystone) - Click to enlarge Too many students turn their backs on engineering thinking it is a career for “nerds”, according to a leading Swiss business lobbyist. Changing this perception is key to plugging an expected shortfall of 50,000 engineering professionals in Switzerland. The proportion of engineers in the workforce...

A warm welcome – the Google reception in Zurich A new ranking shows the best firms to work for in Switzerland – with Google topping the large companies for a third time in a row. Important to employees in all categories: a respectful and motivational work culture. In all, 29 companies were awarded Best Workplaces in Switzerland in the Great Place to Work® Award Ceremony in Zurich on Thursday evening. The results were...