Tag Archives: Featured

Almost a quarter of Swiss dual nationals possess an Italian passport. Around 17% of Swiss residents over the age of 15 hold two passports. The canton of Geneva has the highest proportion of dual nationals at 45%. According to figures released by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) on Tuesday, the double nationality rate exceeds 20% in the cantons of Zurich, Basel City, Ticino, Vaud and Neuchâtel. The cantons with the...

Want to understand the full scope of neofeudalism in America? Follow the money and the power and privilege it buys. The repugnant reality of class privilege in America is captured by the phrase date rape: the violence of forced, non-consensual sex is abhorrent rape when committed by commoner criminals, but implicitly excusable date rape when committed by a member of America’s privileged elite. Compare the effectiveness...

We do not have a free market in interest rates today. We have not had one since the creation of the Fed in 1913. The Fed began buying bonds almost immediately, which pushes up the price and hence pushes down the interest rate. However, as I discuss in my theory of interest and prices, the Fed creates a resonant system with positive feedback loops. It wants lower rates (so the government can borrow more, more cheaply)...

With effect from 1 October 2018, Gregor Bäurle will assume the function of Swiss National Bank (SNB) delegate for regional economic relations for the Central Switzerland region. He succeeds Walter Näf, who is taking on a new position, representing the SNB in the Swiss delegation to the OECD in Paris as of 1 January 2019. Following a research stay in the US as a visiting scholar, Gregor Bäurle received his doctorate in...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.35% at 1.137 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, September 25(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates The major currencies are mixed in quiet turnover. Most of the European currencies are firmer, while the dollar-bloc currencies, yen and Swiss franc are softer. Emerging market currencies are steady to higher, though there are a few...

More bad news for Swiss household budgets was released today for residents of all but three Swiss cantons. ©-Hai-Huy-Ton-That-_-Dreamstime.com_ - Click to enlarge Health insurance premiums in 2019 will be on average 1.2% higher than in 2018 across Switzerland as a whole. However, within this figure there are significant cantonal variations. Hardest hit will be residents of Valais (+3.6%) and Neuchâtel (+3.1%), while...

Alhambra Investments CEO Joe Calhoun shares his opinions of the economy and market based on the most recent economic reports.  Related posts: Monetary Policy Assessment of 20 September 2018 Monthly Macro Monitor – September FX Daily, September 12: Dollar Chops in Narrow Ranges Global Asset Allocation Update – September 2018 Monthly Macro...

Last week, we talked about the capital consumed by Netflix—$8 billion to produce 700 shows. They’re spending more than two thirds of their gross revenue generating content. And this content has so little value, that a quarter of their audience would stop watching if Netflix adds ads (sorry, we couldn’t resist a little fun with the English language). So it is with wry amusement that, this week, Keith heard an ad for an...

Current Account Key figures: Current Account: Up 27.0% against Q1/2018 to 22.1 bn. CHF of which Goods Trade Balance:  Up 4.8% against Q1/2018 to 15.2 bn. of which the Services Balance: Minus 20.6% to 4.6 bn. of which Investment Income: Plus 107.7% to 10.7 bn. CHF. Current Account Switzerland Q2 2018(see more posts on Switzerland Balance of Payments, Switzerland Capital Account, Switzerland Current Account,...

The services sector is proving resilient, but manufacturing disappoints. Euro area flash composite PMI dipped slightly to in September and came in slightly below consensus expectations. Activity in services picked up and weakened further in manufacturing, which continued its decline since the start of the year, falling to 53.3 in September from 54.6 in August. New export orders failed to grow for the first time since...