Tag Archives: Editor’s Choice

At the end of September 2023, driving was banned on a 60 metre section of Langstrasse in Zurich. To enforce the ban, cameras were later set up on 8 January 2024 to catch and fine errant drivers. Since then 17,310 fines have been issued. © Thomas-Stoiber – Dreamstime.comThe driving ban, which excludes buses, was introduced to make the area more cycling friendly and applies from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. At CHF 100 each, the recent fines have generated 1.7 million of...

Support for the popular initiative to boost state pensions by 1/13 narrowed from 61% to 53% between 14 January and 10 February, according to a poll published by RTS. © Bigpressphoto-Dreamstime.comVoting intentions vary significantly by age. In the latest poll, people under 40 were most against it (55%), possibly because they know they will probably need to finance most of it. While only 34% of those 65 and over were against it. Those in the middle are the middle, with only 42% opposed to...

Much of the progress being made in AI is captured within private companies aiming to keep it to themselves in order to profit from it. Open AI, a project started as an open-source non-profit has morphed into a largely closed-source profit-maximising project increasingly integrated into the software company Microsoft. Many see open-source as critical to the healthy development of AI. A super computer combined with the knowhow of Switzerlands world-leading federal universities could help to...

The federal government spent less in 2023 than budgeted but overestimated revenue. The net effect was an additional unexpected shortfall of CHF 1.4 billion, reported SRF. © Bartolomiej Pietrzyk | Dreamstime.comAt a media conference this week, finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said that the Federal Council was not aiming to raise a taxes to fund the additional shortfall. Raising taxes would require a constitutional amendment to get around the debt brake and would set a precedent for...

© Bartolomiej Pietrzyk | Dreamstime.com The federal government spent less in 2023 than budgeted but overestimated revenue. The net effect was an additional shortfall of CHF 1.4 billion, reported SRF. At a media conference this week, finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said that the Federal Council was not aiming to raise a taxes to fund the additional shortfall. Raising taxes would require a constitutional amendment to get around the debt brake and would set a...

Over the 12 months to the end of January 2024, annual inflation in Switzerland fell from 3.4% to 1.3%. The latest rate is 0.4 percentage points lower than a month earlier – it was 1.7% at the end of December 2023. Photo by Castorly Stock on Pexels.comAt the same time, on a monthly basis, inflation rose from 0% in December 2023 to 0.2% in January 2024, an annualised rate of 2.4%. This means the fall in the annual rate from 1.7% to 1.3% was driven entirely by the base effect. When a month...

The number of people unemployed in Switzerland rose by more than most economists expected in January 2024. Photo by energepic.com on Pexels.comThe rate at the end of January rose to 2.5%, up from 2.3% at the end of 2023, reported the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). A group of economists predicted it would be between 2.2% to 2.5%, placing the actual figure at the top end of expectations. However, the rate remains low by historical standards. And some of the...

Passing through a Swiss airport during peak holiday season might give an impression Swiss like holiday in far away places. However, a survey by the Swiss Bankers, a company that provides holiday related financial services, shows most like to stay close to home. Photo by Shoeb Khan on Pexels.comIn 2023, 25.9% of total holiday spending was made in Switzerland, followed by France (7.3%), Germany (7.1%), Italy (6.2%), Great Britain (5.5%) and Spain (5.1%). These six made up 57.1% of the...

This week, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) published the Swiss residential property price index for 2023, which showed an annual price increase of 2.2%, with a rise of 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Photo by PhotoMIX Company on Pexels.comThe average price of single-family homes rose by an average of 1.9% last year and the prices of apartments rose by an average of 2.4%. In the fourth quarter of 2023, both the prices of single-family homes (+0.5%) and those of apartments (+1.7%) were...

This week, a survey was published setting out issues of greatest concern to the Swiss public. Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Pexels.comThe five biggest issues cited by the Swiss population are of a monetary nature. Economic concerns haverisen, leaving issues such as climate change in sixth place. The top concern is healthcare costs and health insurance premiums. 41.8% were worried about this. This is the leading concern across all age groups, including those under 30 who are typically...