Tag Archives: Swiss economy

Economic forecasts by the Federal Government’s Expert Group – spring 2017*. Swiss economic growth turned out disappointingly weak in the second half of 2016. However, the leading indicators are pointing to a clear upward trend in early 2017 and the global economy is sending out positive signals. The Federal Government’s Expert Group is therefore expecting growth in gross domestic product (GDP) to accelerate to +1.6% in...

The Swiss National Bank left monetary policy unchanged at its latest meeting and forecast that the Swiss economy would grow 1.5% in 2017.At its latest policy meeting on 16 March, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) left the interest rate on sight deposits at a record low of -0.75% and the central bank reiterated its willingness to intervene in the foreign exchange market if needed, “taking the overall currency situation into consideration”, as it had mentioned in its previous press release. The...

GDP growth picked up in 2016, with the export-orientated manufacturing sector contributing positively in spite of the strong franc. We expect the Swiss growth rate to be broadly similar this year.The Swiss statistical agency (SECO)’s quarterly estimates show a provisional GDP growth rate of 1.3% in 2016 compared with 0.8% in 2015.Two aspects of today’s report are worth mentioning. First, on the expenditure side, both domestic demand components and foreign trade helped to boost Swiss growth...

The Swiss economy is expected to grow by 1.5 percent in 2017. While more and more export sectors are regaining their competitiveness, the domestic economy lacks growth momentum. With the inflation rate likely to turn positive, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is expected to reduce its currency purchases in the course of the year....

Articles Location Zug: At the Top, but the Lead Is Narrowing Zug is a successful canton. According to the new regional study by Credit Suisse, one of Zug's main competitive advantages, its low corporate taxes, is likely to fade over the next few years. Rival locations will catch up. The canton of...

The Swiss economy has proved more resilient than expected to the sudden appreciation of the Swiss franc in January 2015, but negative deposit rates could remain in place through 2017.On 15 January 2015, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) decided to discontinue the minimum exchange rate of CHF1.20 per euro introduced in September 2011. The SNB’s announcement came as a shock for the Swiss economy, and resulted in a sharp appreciation of the Swiss franc. But two years later, the Swiss economy has...

The new Sector Handbook from Credit Suisse explains the outlook for the most important sectors. By the end of 2016, the Swiss economy had largely overcome the franc shock of early 2015. However, the recovery has yet to fully reach every sector. The export industry was cut in half in 2016. On one...

The Industry Faces Shopping Tourism and Digitalization. Sales to Stagnate in 2017. 2016 was another challenging year for the Swiss retail industry. Real demand fell; coupled with slightly lower prices, this again led to a decline in nominal sector sales (-1.0 percent vs. 2015) for the second year...

Households can make substantial savings by moving to a different location. The most recent Credit Suisse study highlights the Swiss municipalities in which households have the largest disposable income after the deduction of mandatory taxes and fixed costs.  The criteria used to identify the...

Political actors will continue to stir up controversy in 2017. The elections scheduled for May in France and autumn in Germany will reveal whether the established parties are capable of channeling voters' disaffection into a smooth course or not. Marine Le Pen has made no secret of her intention to have the French electorate vote on EU membership if she is elected French president – which is not an entirely absurd proposition. An exit by France would spell the end of the EU. This...