Tag Archives: Latest News

“Households are feeling the strain as prices continue to rise,” SECO said on Monday. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Consumers in Switzerland are much more pessimistic about the general economic situation, with households feeling the strain as prices continue to rise, a new survey shows. April data published by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) on Monday shows that overall consumer sentiment has deteriorated “significantly” in recent months. The consumer...

The issue of rising energy and fuel prices is ‘on the government’s radar’, according to Energy Minister Simonetta Sommaruga © Keystone / Christian Beutler The Swiss government has set up a working group to examine whether measures are needed to relieve the burden on households caused by rising energy prices. “[The government] is observing the development very closely in order to clarify whether support is needed to cushion hardship cases,” said Energy Minister...

Peace marchers head towards the centre of Bern on Monday © Keystone/peter Schneider The traditional Easter march has taken place in the Swiss capital, Bern. This year the “Walk for Peace” focused on issues including the climate and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Up to 1,000 people, waving rainbow-coloured peace flags, gathered by the River Aare on Monday. They walked along the river, within sight of the Ukrainian embassy at Helvetiaplatz, into the city and ended in...

Nuclear plants fell short by 19.4% because of maintenance work carried out at the Leibstadt plant over several months. © Keystone / Alexandra Wey The Alpine nation consumed 2.4 million kilowatt hours (kWh) more electricity in 2021, equivalent to the annual consumption of 479,800 households. “In addition to the pandemic-related ‘compensatory effects’ in the second quarter, general economic development, the weather and population development increased consumption in...

Residents walk through rubble in the Ukrainian city of Bucha on Wednesday. Hundreds of tortured and murdered civilians have been found in Bucha and other parts of the Kyiv region after the Russian army retreated from those areas. Keystone / Roman Pilipey Switzerland has so far frozen some CHF7.5 billion ($8 billion) in funds and assets under sanctions against Russians to punish Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. These are funds in frozen accounts and properties in four...

The organic food market in Switzerland experienced slower growth in 2021 than the previous year. However, consumers are spending more than ever on organic products. According to annual figures released by the organic food association Bio Suisse on Wednesday, the market for organic products grew 0.6% in 2021 to reach a share of 10.9% of the total market. In 2020, the association recorded a 4% growth in organic sales. One of the reasons for the slower growth is that...

Most of the refugees are women and children. If Switzerland is to benefit from the women’s skills in the workplace, it will have to solve a shortage of childcare places. Keystone / Peter Schneider Switzerland can cope with a large number of Ukrainian refugees, and their skills can benefit the economy, says migration expert Thomas Kessler. “The Ukrainian women will provide new impetus in this country,” he told the SonntagsBlick newspaper. “Especially in the IT sector,...

The Swiss government did not ban Russian media as has the European Union. Keystone / Mikhail Klimentyev The Swiss government on Friday adopted additional sanctions against Russia for its ongoing war in Ukraine but did not ban the Russian state TV channels Sputnik and Russia Today like the European Union. Switzerland joins the sanctions measures adopted by the European Union on March 9 and 15. It has already imposed a series of sanctions in line with the EU. The first...

Severin Schwan is also CEO of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche. Keystone / Georgios Kefalas Credit Suisse announced on Monday that Vice-Chair Severin Schwan would not stand for re-election. This follows a reported rebellion by large shareholder groups at the Swiss bank. “Severin Schwan, who joined the Board in 2014 and has acted as Vice-Chair and Lead Independent Director since 2017, has decided not to stand for re-election,” Credit Suisse said in a statementExternal...

“No natural gas, no war” protestors in the capital Bern on Saturday ©keystone/peter Schneider Renouncing Russian oil and gas would have serious consequences for the Swiss economy, an expert from the KOF Swiss Economic Institute has told a Sunday newspaper. If imports were to be cut off, for example in the wake of tougher sanctions against Russia, Swiss gross domestic product (GDP) would fall by 3-4 percentage points, spread over two years, according to calculations...