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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The Swiss eID law has flaws, but is another version worth the wait?

2021-02-19

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2021-02-19

The eID is billed as a long-overdue key to the digital world, a single access point for services provided by a range of public and private-sector organisations. But the model proposed by Switzerland – being put to a nationwide referendum in March – is far from watertight.

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Switzerland tops global e-commerce index

2021-02-18

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2021-02-18

Switzerland is the best equipped country for online shopping, according to a United Nations comparison of more than 150 states.

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The United Nations in Geneva – before and during the pandemic

2021-02-18

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2021-02-18

With the exception of a few organisations and institutions that continue to operate in person, such as the UN Human Rights Council, which is currently conducting its Universal Periodic Review process, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the WHO and some permanent missions to the United Nations, most day-to-day business and multilateral activities are conducted online.

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Swiss competition watchdog to investigate Mastercard

2021-02-17

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2021-02-17

The competition authority suspects the global credit card firm of using its position to prevent the rollout of a new, more uniform, ATM system across Switzerland.

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Residential property prices continue to rise 

2021-02-16

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2021-02-16

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. 

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Hear Swiss stories for the world on The Swiss Connection podcast

2021-02-16

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2021-02-16

What’s it like to move back to – or away from – Switzerland during a pandemic? What does gold mined in Peru have to do with Switzerland? Did you know that “nostalgia” is a Swiss invention?

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Unhappy Endings: Deception Has Gone Global

2021-02-16

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2021-02-16

Rescue Acts, 1931-2020
Looking Behind the LabelsRegardless of one’s politics, most would agree that extremely complex issues are typically given extremely misleading titles.Not all those of the extreme left, for example, are all that “woke” and not everyone on the far right, to be fair, is a “domestic terrorist.

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Report shows slump in foreign investment in Swiss real estate

2021-02-15

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2021-02-15

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.

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Swiss spent record amount on food in 2020

2021-02-14

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2021-02-14

Consumers spent 11.3% more on food and beverages in brick-and-mortar shops last year than they did in 2019, helping the food retail trade to pull in a record turnover of nearly CHF30 billion ($33.7 billion).

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European banks need new chiefs

2021-02-13

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2021-02-13

EUROPEAN BANKS’ fourth-quarter earnings, releases of which are clustered around early February, have been surprisingly perky. Those with trading arms, such as UBS or BNP Paribas, rode on buoyant markets. State support helped contain bad loans; few banks needed to top up provisions.

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Covid changes Swiss holiday and transport habits

2021-02-12

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2021-02-12

A third of Swiss people chose not to travel on holiday last year as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the world, according to automobile association Touring Club Switzerland (TCS).

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Middle class shrinks in Switzerland

2021-02-12

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2021-02-12

Statistics published at the end of January 2021 show a fall in the percentage of the population included in the definition of middle class in Switzerland.

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Covid: new negative test requirement for entering Switzerland

2021-02-11

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2021-02-11

From Monday 8 February 2021, many people entering Switzerland require a negative PCR test. Currently, there are restrictions on who can enter Switzerland. Generally, only those with a Swiss passport, a valid Swiss residence or cross-border permit, and those who are citizens of an EU or EFTA nation are allowed to enter Switzerland under the current Covid-19 restrictions.

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‘Looking after citizens’ ID data is a sovereign task’

2021-02-10

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2021-02-10

Lawyer and parliamentarian Sibel Arslan explains why she is against the proposed new law on digital identity (eID) and why rejecting it would be an opportunity for digitisation. 

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Covid: time to double down, says Swiss expert

2021-02-10

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2021-02-10

Since reaching a peak in early November 2020, Covid-19 cases in Switzerland have fallen significantly. The 7-day daily average was 8,238 on 8 November 2020. By 8 February 2021, this figure was down by more than 80% at 1,437. However, according to Martin Ackermann, head of the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force, now is not the time for Switzerland to relax.

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Covid: Israel’s vaccine experiment looks promising

2021-02-09

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2021-02-09

Israel leads the world in the race to vaccinate against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, in what some are calling the world’s leading Covid-19 vaccine experiment. 64 doses of vaccine per 100 people have been administered there, far more than in any other nation.

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Switzerland experiences highest unemployment rate in a decade

2021-02-08

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2021-02-08

The unemployment rate in Switzerland rose again in January, reaching 3.7% - the highest level since April 2010. 

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The introduction of women’s suffrage worldwide

2021-02-07

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Switzerland was one of the last countries to grant women their right to vote, preceding only 22 other countries worldwide. Today, only one country doesn't allow women voters to cast their ballot in national elections, just because there aren't any. In Vatican City, an absolute monarchy, the legislators are appointed by the Pope. Neither male nor female citizens have the right to vote. February 7, 2021, marks the 50th anniversary of Swiss women's...

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Protecting livestock from predators costs Swiss taxpayers millions

2021-02-07

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2021-02-07

The federal government spends CHF4 million (around $4.4 million) a year to minimise the damage caused by predators like wolves and lynx.

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Vaccine delays costing Switzerland up to 100 million francs a day

2021-02-06

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2021-02-06

A recent study by Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force calculates that vaccination delays are reducing Switzerland’s national output (GDP) by between CHF 50 – 100 million per day, according to RTS.

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