Tag Archives: Latest News

The government wants to boost relations with ASEAN countries (Archive photo from 2017 with Swiss foreign minister and representatives from ASEAN countries). © Keystone / Peter Klaunzer The Swiss government has for the first time adopted a regional strategy for the Asia-Pacific region for the period 2023-2026. The move takes into account the growing importance of the southeast Asia region and complements the government’s China strategy, according to a government...

Swiss chemists are running low on some medication Keystone / Expa/ Stefanie Oberhauser The Swiss pharmaceutical industry should be less dependent on active ingredients from Asia, says the president of the industry umbrella organisation, pharmaSuisse. Martine Ruggli has called for new drug companies to be built in Europe. If a drug runs out in Switzerland, it’s not available in the whole of Europe “in an extreme situation like the present one”, she said. With...

© Keystone / Christian Beutler The president of the Swiss Employers’ Association wants to increase the potential workforce in Switzerland by 300,000 people. To achieve this, women, young people, the elderly and refugees must be integrated into the labour market or be given more work, said Valentin Vogt on Swiss public radio SRF on Saturday. “The lack of labour is the biggest obstacle to the growth of the Swiss economy,” he warned. According to him, if this...

Illustrative photo taken at the Nestlé Shop in Kemptthal, Switzerland. swissinfo.ch/Dominique Soguel In response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, the Swiss multinational Nestlé announced that it would reduce its range of product in Russia to “essential” goods such as baby milk. But supermarket shelves in Moscow paint a different picture, according to the NZZ. The world’s largest food and beverage company continues to sell and produce a wide range of food products, as well...

© Keystone / Ennio Leanza Switzerland’s largest telecommunications operator, Swisscom, is changing its approach to data disclosure in order better protect its customers. The operator reserves the right, after examination, to “seal” the electronic correspondence (e-mails) of its customers until a court has decided otherwise, the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper reported. To date, the public prosecutor’s office in Switzerland can access the emails of suspects without the...

Pharmaceutical exports in nominal terms increased by 40% since the Ukraine war began. However, export volume increased only slightly. © Keystone / Christian Beutler Swiss exports of pharmaceuticals to Russia, which are not subject to sanctions, reached a 30-year record last year, buoyed by high prices. Roche, Novartis and the other Swiss pharma companies brought in CHF2.1 billion ($2.3 billion) from the export of pharmaceuticals to Russia in 2022. In 2021 the Swiss...

The return of Chinese tourists to Switzerland is not expected just yet. Keystone / Mark R. Cristino Geneva airport was expected to see the return of direct flights from China next week, but the scheduled Air China flights of January 26 and February 2 have been cancelled due to lack of passengers, reports Swiss public broadcaster RTS. China reopened its borders on January 8 after three years of tough pandemic restrictions. However, there were not enough bookings to...

Pharmaceuticals giant Roche, whose towers dominate the Basel skyline, is the top ranked Swiss company in this listing. © Keystone / Michael Buholzer Swiss pharmaceuticals group Roche, logistics company Kühne+Nagel and luxury goods group Richemont are among the world’s top 100 family businesses, according to a study by EY Switzerland. Sixteen Swiss-based family businesses are among the world’s top 500, a figure that has remained stable over the past two years,...

Food and energy are among the industries dominated by a small number of players that have effective oligopolies, and the lack of competition allows them to keep prices high, Oxfam says Keystone / Alessandro Della Bella Food companies making big profits as inflation has surged should face windfall taxes to help cut global inequality, anti-poverty group Oxfam said on Monday as the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) gets underway in the Swiss mountain...

Apartment buildings and other accommodation in St Moritz, canton Graubünden. The canton registered the biggest rent increases last year (6.7%). Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller Rents in Switzerland rose by an average of 2.8% last year, the largest annual increase in 14 years. Switzerland is unique in Europe with the majority of residents living in rented accommodation. The 2022 increase is the biggest since the annual rent survey began in 2009, according to the Homegate...