Die Frankenschwäche sowie der anhaltende Aufwärtstrend an den Aktienmärkten haben zum voraussichtlichen Gewinn der SNB beigetragen. (Bild: Shutterstock.com/MDart10) Am kommenden Donnerstag wird die Schweizerische Nationalbank (SNB) ihr Finanzergebnis für das erste Quartal 2021 präsentieren. Die UBS erwartet für diesen Zeitraum einen SNB-Gewinn von rund 40 Mrd. CHF, wie einer Mitteilung vom Montag zu entnehmen ist. Wie die UBS-Ökonomen ausführen, haben die...
Read More »FX Daily, April 26: Big Week Begins Quietly, with the Greenback Still Under Pressure
Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.03% to 1.1048 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, April 26(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: What promises to be a notable week has begun off quietly: the US, EMU, and South Korea report Q1 GDP. The eurozone also provides its first estimate of April inflation. Corporate earnings feature tech and financial firms. Equities are mostly firmer in the Asia Pacific region and...
Read More »Why Empowering Organized Labor Will Definitely Not Help the Economy
Paul Krugman has a very prominent perch from the editorial page at the New York Times and he has used his influence, among other things, to shill for two things that are anathema to a strong economy: inflation and organized labor. My analysis examines what Krugman says about labor unions and explains why once again his economic prognostications are off base. In a recent column, Krugman declares that the present political climate may reverse the long trend in private...
Read More »Ex-roads ministry worker ‘paid CHF2,000 a month’ to rig emissions data
Switzerland has introduced targets and regulations to reduce vehicle C02 emissions. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally A former employee at the Swiss Federal Roads Office (FEDRO) and two board members of a vehicle exporter have been charged with fraudulently manipulating data to avoid CO2 emissions sanctions. The Swiss federal prosecutor’s office said on Monday that the fraud had illegally saved the vehicle exporter from paying CHF9 million ($9.8 million) in financial...
Read More »Swiss bank pays up to settle German tax evasion probe
Some Germans appear to have used Migros Bank to hide assets from their home tax authorities. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally Switzerland’s Migros Bank has agreed to pay €2.4 million (CHF2.65 million) to clear up cross-border tax evasion issues with Germany. Migros is one of several Swiss banks that have shelled out a penalty to avoid prosecution in the neighbouring country. Other banks to have made such an arrangement in the past include UBS, Credit Suisse and Julius Bär....
Read More »The number of MRI devices in hospitals has increased by 25 percent in 5 years
23.04.2021 – In 2019, hospitals in Switzerland were equipped with 215 MRI devices, representing an increase of 25% in five years. They also had 219 scanners (+9% in five years). In total, almost 1.18 million scans and 1.06 million MRI screenings were carried out in Switzerland in 2019. Hospital scanners are increasingly in demand: the number of scans carried out every day on average per device increased from 11 in 2014 to 13 in 2019. These are some of the results...
Read More »WEF set to return to Davos in 2022
The WEF’s annual get-together of business, political and civil society leaders is planned for January 17-22 Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is set to take place in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos again next year. However, reasonable hotel rates are a prerequisite and the Covid-19 situation is also a decisive factor, according to organisers. “We want to remain true to tradition and Davos,” WEF spokesman Yann Zopf...
Read More »Im Kampf fürs Bargeld: „Das Höllentor steht nun einen Spalt offen“
23. April 2021 – Interview mit Carlos A. Gebauer über den „Kampf für das Bargeld“. Die Fragen stellte Thorsten Polleit. Carlos A. Gebauer ist Rechtsanwalt, Fachanwalt für Medizinrecht und Publizist aus Düsseldorf. ***** Herr Gebauer, Sie vertreten als Rechtsanwalt in einem Musterverfahren einen Mandanten, der auf sein Recht pocht, den Rundfunkzwangsbeitrag bar bezahlen zu dürfen. Bevor wir über den Fortgang des Verfahrens sprechen und seine Bedeutung im „Kampf für...
Read More »Covid: the 3 phases of Switzerland’s return to normal
This week, Switzerland’s government set out the three phases of its plan to return to normal at a press conference recorded by RTS. The first is the protection phase, which we are currently in. This involves vaccinating the vulnerable and could last until the end of May 2021. The second is the stabilisation phase. This involves vaccinating all adults who want the shot. At this point bars could begin to open and larger events could be allowed with access limited to...
Read More »2021-04-23 – U.S. dollar liquidity-providing operations from 1 July 2021
In view of the sustained improvements in U.S. dollar funding conditions and low demand at recent U.S. dollar liquidity-providing operations, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank and the Swiss National Bank, in consultation with the Federal Reserve, have jointly decided to discontinue offering dollar liquidity at the 84-day maturity. This operational change will be effective as of 1 July 2021. The auction schedule until 30 June 2021, as...
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