Category Archive: 3) Swiss Markets and News

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Investec is a distinctive Specialist Bank and Asset Manager. We provide a diverse range of financial products and services to a niche client base in three principal markets, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia, as well as certain other geographies. Investec’s strategic goals are motivated by the desire to develop an efficient and integrated business on an international scale through the active pursuit of clearly established core competencies in the group’s principal business areas.
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Three surprises and one piece of sad news

2019-10-23

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Last Sunday’s federal election was historic for many reasons, but also disappointing for some voters, as for the first time it wasn’t possible to vote electronically. Despite some voting material being delivered late to Swiss living abroad, some of them still managed to cast their vote and give us feedback on the outcome. Nouvo brings …

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Japan Tobacco staff protest over job cuts

2019-10-23

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2019-10-23

Almost 100 Japan Tobacco International (JTI) staff protested outside their Geneva headquarters on Tuesday against job cuts. Around a quarter of the Geneva workforce are affected by major restructuring plans. Last month the multinational firm behind cigarette brands like Winston, Camel and Benson & Hedges confirmed restructuring plans and job cuts. Some 268 posts out of 1,100 are due to be cut at the Geneva headquarters.

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Swiss remain the richest in the world

2019-10-22

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2019-10-22

The Swiss have pulled away from the pack when it comes to assets per adult, remaining on average the wealthiest citizens in the world. In concrete terms, by mid-2019 assets per adult in Switzerland stood at $564,650 (CHF555,000), an increase of $17,790 over the previous year, according to the tenth Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report, published on Monday.

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Swiss railways see more demand for train trips abroad

2019-10-21

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2019-10-21

Travellers in Switzerland are increasingly taking to the rails for trips abroad, with the Swiss Federal Railways reporting a 10% increase in demand for international journeys and 25% more demand for trips by night train. According to a report in the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper, demand for night train journeys especially increased on stretches between Switzerland and the German cities of Berlin and Hamburg, while overall demand for international trips...

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Technology winning battle against banknote forgers

2019-10-20

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2019-10-20

Swiss banknotes are far more resistant to counterfeiters than in previous years, dramatically reducing the number of fake copies, say federal police. By contrast, far more counterfeit coins were seized last year, probably as a result of better detection methods. In 2018, a record low of 1,200 fake banknotes were discovered by police.

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5G tests Switzerland’s limits on cybersecurity

2019-10-20

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2019-10-20

As more governments mull the risks of working with foreign vendors of 5G networks, eyes are on Switzerland as one of the technology’s early adopters. Will the Swiss take a heavier hand in restricting foreign providers like Huawei in the 5G supply chain or let the market decide? In a grim but not-so-far-fetched scenarioexternal link, a hacker attacks a 5G antenna, sending malicious signals to millions of connected devices.

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Raising Switzerland’s retirement age – big differences of opinion

2019-10-19

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2019-10-19

Switzerland’s government has long discussed the importance of raising the retirement age to ensure the financial viability of the pension system. However, it is not clear whether voters would support such a plan. According to a survey by Deloitte, an accounting and consulting company, raising the official retirement age might not find majority support among Swiss voters. Some groups are firmly against the idea.

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Credit Suisse to charge wealthy clients negative interest rates

2019-10-19

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2019-10-19

Credit Suisse has joined the likes of UBS and Post Finance in charging rich clients to park their wealth in its vaults. It will pass on the cost of the central bank’s negative interest rates to both private individuals and corporate accounts above certain thresholds. From November 15, corporate clients will be charged -0.85% interest on cash holdings above CHF10 million ($10 million), Credit Suisse confirmed on Friday.

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Referendum to ban tobacco advertising in Switzerland reaches 100,000 signatures

2019-10-18

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2019-10-18

An initiative demanding a ban on tobacco advertising has collected 109,969 valid signatures, more than the 100,000 minimum required to launch a popular vote, according to RTS. The planned vote entitled: “Yes to the protection of children and young people against tobacco advertising” demands the federal government ban all forms of tobacco advertising towards children and young people.

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Commodities trader Gunvor held criminally liable for corruption

2019-10-17

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2019-10-17

The Geneva-based trading company Gunvor has been ordered to pay almost CHF94 million ($94.6 million), including a fine of CHF4 million over bribery in Africa. The commodities trader failed to prevent its employees and agents from bribing public officials between 2008 and 2011 in order to gain access to the petroleum markets in the Republic of Congo and Ivory Coast, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) said in a statement on...

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How to choose your candidatesplatforms

2019-10-16

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The federal elections are coming up this Sunday and there are 3 websites where you can take a quiz to find out which candidate suits you the best. The number of questions vary, as do the final suggestions. Did you find someone who could represent you? Nouvo brings you short videos about Switzerland, Swiss current … Continue...

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Gefährliche Scheingewinne bei PKs

2019-10-16

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2019-10-16

Die Schweizer Pensionskassen halten rund 30% ihrer Anlagen in klassischen Obligationen. Die meisten dieser Anleihen weisen eine negative Rendite aus. Dies, weil die Kurse so stark gestiegen sind, dass sich auf deren hohem Niveau trotz positivem Coupon (Nominalzins) eine Rendite auf Verfall von unter null ergibt. Das heisst, dass die erwarteten Kursverluste die Zinserträge übersteigen.

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Spying scandal weighs on Tidjane Thiam’s tenure at Credit Suisse

2019-10-16

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2019-10-16

When Tidjane Thiam arrived at the helm of Credit Suisse in the summer of 2015, he was a hero. Plucked from the same role at UK insurer Prudential, where he had doubled the share price in six years, he had big plans to shrink the Swiss group’s investment bank, slash costs, raise fresh capital and expand in Asia.

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Unions urge probe on asbestos-linked deaths

2019-10-15

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2019-10-15

Labour unions are demanding a probe of companies’ pre-1990 working conditions in the southern Swiss canton of Ticino, in connection with recent asbestos-linked deaths. They are targeting particularly Swiss Federal Railways and the Swiss accident insurance fund SUVA.

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Swiss upper house calls on executive to end marriage tax penalty

2019-10-15

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2019-10-15

In Switzerland, some married couples pay more tax than unmarried ones, something referred to as the marriage tax penalty. The issue has been doing the rounds of the halls of Switzerland’s government for around 30 years. On 28 February 2016, a vote to change the current system was narrowly rejected by 50.8% of voters.

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Zurich homes market in highly overvalued territory, says UBS

2019-10-14

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2019-10-14

Every quarter UBS, a bank, publishes its real estate bubble index, a report that covers real estate prices in 24 cities around the world. In the third quarter of 2019, Munich was listed as the most overvalued housing market in the world. Bubble risk was highest in Munich, Toronto, Hong Kong and Amsterdam. Frankfurt, Vancouver and Paris.

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Why Switzerland ranks near the top of the 2019 global competitiveness ranking

2019-10-14

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2019-10-14

Switzerland made the the top 5, after dropping from 4th to 5th, in this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Competitiveness Index. Switzerland’s decline was largely due to a down weighting of a factor where it is strong, according to WEF’s Saadia Zahidi. The Global Competitive Index measures performance in 114 areas that influence a nation’s productivity.

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EU removes Switzerland from tax haven list

2019-10-13

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2019-10-13

In December 2017, the European Union (EU) set up a blacklist and a grey list of tax havens, countries it deemed were being used to help companies and wealthy individuals reduce their tax bills. Switzerland ended up on the grey list. Nations on these lists faced reputational damage and stricter controls on financial transactions with the EU.

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Cashflow crisis looms over UN in Geneva

2019-10-13

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2019-10-13

The United Nations is facing a serious cashflow crisis, as 63 states – including its largest contributor, the United States – have not paid their annual dues. In Geneva, officials at the UN’s European headquarters (UNOG) are considering ways to cut costs, while the host nation looks on anxiously.

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State railway company beset with fresh problems 

2019-10-12

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2019-10-12

All the Swiss Federal Railways’ new Bombardier double-decker trains will have to go in for repairs for certain parts to be replaced, it has emerged. The news of the latest technical problems was broken by Swiss public television SRF, citing internal documents. At present, 12 out of the 59 Bombardier trains are in operation on a line between Chur (in southeastern Switzerland) and Basel in the northwestern part of the country.

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