Tag Archives: Featured

You would never have guessed it reading many of the op-eds and pundits pronouncing the end to globalization or the West, or liberalism. Global equities have rallied. Of course,  stock prices are not the end all and be all, but it stands in stark contrast to the cries that the sky is falling. The MSCI World Index of developed markets advanced for the second consecutive week adding 2.2%. The US S&P 500 moved above...

Taxi drivers and trade unions have both opposed Uber in Switzerland. The ride sharing service Uber plans to expand further in Switzerland, but not as aggressively as in the past, Swiss head Steve Salom says in a newspaper interview. Uber is present in Zurich, Basel, Geneva and Lausanne with 300,000 regular customers and some 2,600 drivers in Switzerland, Salom told SonntagsBlick. But it has also run into some...

Our institutional failure reminds me of the phantom legions of Rome’s final days. The mainstream media and its well-paid army of “authorities” / pundits would have us believe the decline in our collective trust in our institutions is the result of fake news, i.e. false narratives and data presented as factual. If only we could rid ourselves of fake news, all would be well, as our institutions are working just fine....

In Switzerland, tax is largely determined by the canton of residence. The range of tax rates is wide. In 2017, a single person earning CHF 100,000 paid only CHF 7,592 in the canton of Zug but CHF 19,233 in the canton of Neuchâtel, more than 2.5 times as much. Someone married with children earning the same amount paid CHF 920 in Zug and CHF 9,249 in Neuchâtel, more than 10 times as much. ...

The Dollar Index made a marginal new high for the year at the end of June a touch below 95.55. It fell through the start of this week when it reached nearly 93.70. With the earlier gains, the Dollar Index briefly traded above the 61.8% retracement of the pullback  (~94.85). A move now below 94.20 would be disappointing. The Dollar Index is not a trade-weighted. It is too concentrated in Europe and does not include two...

© Arturo Osorno | Dreamstime.com Net migration into Switzerland from the EU was down by 11% last year, according to the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). In 2017, a net 31,250 people from the EU and EFTA moved to Switzerland. And, with a 4% decline in the number arriving over the five months to May 2018, the fall looks set to continue. For some nationalities the net flow went into reverse. In 2017, more...

The US economy is among the strongest among the large economies. Goosed by the never-fail elixir of tax cuts and spending increases, the US economy is accelerating.  Nevertheless, we continue to see the fiscal boost as short-lived, and a recent Fed paper suggested that fiscal stimulus in an upswing may not have the same multiplier as during a downturn. Evidence of late-cycle behavior continues to accumulate. We have...

[embedded content] Economic thoughts and analysis from Alhambra Investments CEO Joe Calhoun. Related posts: Bi-Weekly Economic Review (VIDEO) Bi-Weekly Economic Review Bi-Weekly Economic Review Bi-Weekly Economic Review: Oil, Interest Rates & Economic Growth Bi-Weekly Economic Review Bi-Weekly Economic Review: As Good As It Gets? Bi-Weekly...

The Producer Price Index (PPI) or officially named “Producer and Import Price Index” describes the changes in prices for producers and importers. For us it is interesting because it is used in the formula for the Real Effective Exchange Rate. When producers and importers profit on lower price changes when compared to other countries, then the Swiss Franc reduces its overvaluation. The Swiss PPI values of -6% in 2015...

Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.01% to 1.1698 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, July 13(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Sterling’s 0.6% loss (@ ~$1.3120) is co-leading the downside in the firm US dollar environment, having to share that role with the New Zealand dollar today, where a weaker manufacturing PMI (52.8 from 54.4) is taking a toll. Both sterling and...