Tag Archives: Latest News

The hackers said they wanted to raise awareness about mass surveillance © Keystone / Christian Beutler Swiss authorities on Monday confirmed a police raid at the home of a Swiss hacker who took credit for helping to break into a US security-camera company’s online networks, part of what the hacker cited as an effort to raise awareness about the dangers of mass surveillance. The Federal Office of Justice said regional police in central Lucerne, acting on a legal...

The team carried out investigations into the presence of rare earth metals in sewage at 63 treatment plants across Switzerland. © Keystone / Christian Beutler Rare earth metals like cerium and gadolinium, which are used in industry and hospitals, are increasingly being detected at Swiss wastewater plants, new research shows. For the first time scientists from the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) carried out investigations into the...

The value of Switzerland’s foreign currency and gold positions rose during the pandemic as investors sought safe havens. Keystone / Martin Ruetschi The Swiss National Bank (SNB) recorded a profit of CHF20.9 billion (almost $23 billion) in 2020, less than half of the CHF48.9 billion it made in 2019. Some CHF6 billion of the profits will be distributed to the Swiss government and cantons, compared to CHF4 billion last year. The distribution of profits is regulated by...

Swiss President Guy Parmelin (right) and Health Minister Alain Berset at Wednesday’s press conference to confirm the relaxation measures on Wednesday Keystone / Peter Klaunzer Is the government showing some backbone or being cowardly by keeping to its gradual pandemic reopening plans? The Swiss media can’t agree. For the German-speaking Neue Zürcher ZeitungExternal link broadsheet, the government – which confirmed its measures on Wednesday – is simply being...

Will cash machines soon be a thing of the past? © Keystone / Christian Beutler Cash has lost its appeal among the Swiss population as the coronavirus pandemic led more people to pay by bank card, mobile app or online, a recent survey has found. The survey by financial services website moneyland.ch found that for the first time, cash is no longer people’s preferred method of payment. “Moneyland.ch expects that cash will continue to lose in importance,” said...

A restaurant that has been shut in Geneva Keystone / Martial Trezzini Several cantons have called for restaurants to be re-opened a month earlier than the official nationwide plan presented by the government earlier this week. Canton Graubünden wants restaurants to open their terraces from March 1. The canton has done a lot to fight the pandemic with its mass testing pilot programme, its officials argue. “In the end the government will have to give some...

Swiss residential property may offer quality that is high, but so are the prices. Keystone / Arno Balzarini Residential property prices in Switzerland rose sharply in the final quarter of 2020, and by an average 2.5% for the year as a whole, according to the Federal Statistics Office. This is according to the Swiss Residential Property Price Index published for the second time by the FSO on Tuesday. The new index climbed by 2.3% in the fourth quarter compared to the...

View of the Europaalle urban development in Zurich on April 12, 2019. © Keystone / Christian Beutler The share of foreign investment in Swiss commercial real estate fell from 15% before 2011 to 5% between 2017 and 2019, according to new research. The issue of foreigners buying cheap Swiss property during the Covid-19 pandemic is being discussed in Bern. Foreign investment in commercial buildings in Switzerland reached CHF750 million ($841 million) a year, or an...

An extra 6,000 people registered at the unemployment office in January. © Keystone / Christian Beutler The unemployment rate in Switzerland rose again in January, reaching 3.7% – the highest level since April 2010. The impact of the coronavirus crisis continues to be felt on the Swiss economy. At the end of January, 169,753 people were registered as unemployed with the Regional Employment Offices, which is 6,208 more than the previous month. Compared to January...

Around 90% of federal funds go towards livestock protection measures like herd-protection dogs. Keystone / Peter Schneider The federal government spends CHF4 million (around $4.4 million) a year to minimise the damage caused by predators like wolves and lynx. Of this amount some three million Swiss francs are being invested in the protection of herds and flocks, the government revealed in its response to a question from a parliamentarian. Farmers receive around 70%...