Category Archive: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

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SNB returns to quarterly profit thanks to Swiss franc weakness

2024-04-25

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2024-04-25

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) returned to a quarterly profit because of the weakness of the Swiss franc, potentially helping officials to rebuild the central bank’s depleted capital base. The Zurich-based institution notched up a gain of CHF58.8 billion ($64 billion) in the first quarter, according to a statement on Thursday. That’s the strongest start to the year on record.

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Switzerland braced for wave of bank staff layoffs

2024-04-15

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2024-04-15

Redundancies at Switzerland's largest bank will test the capacity of the financial sector to absorb jobs. A year ago Credit Suisse staff were stunned by the sudden demise of their bank. Many are now fighting for their careers with 3,000 Swiss posts set to be axed by their new employer UBS, starting this year.

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UBS must build up more equity, says Swiss government

2024-04-14

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2024-04-14

UBS already has to build up additional equity capital because it has become much larger as a result of the Credit Suisse takeover, Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said.

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Investigation into collapse of Credit Suisse beset by delays

2024-03-14

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2024-03-14

In March 2023, Credit Suisse collapsed. An uncontrolled bankruptcy could only be prevented by big government aid and an emergency merger with competitor UBS. Switzerland is now waiting for a parliamentary inquiry report to reveal who was at fault as the bank disintegrated.

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CEO pay: can Switzerland compete with the US?

2024-03-07

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2024-03-07

Swiss CEOs are some of the best paid in Europe but compared to peers in the United States, their salaries look modest. Some in the Swiss pharmaceutical industry see this as a problem.

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SWISS reports highest ever profit 

2024-03-07

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2024-03-07

SWISS’ turnover totalled CHF5.3 billion ($6 billion) last year, the airline announced on Thursday, a significant increase on the previous year’s CHF4.4 billion, and a return to 2019 levels for the first time since the pandemic.

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Swiss exports to Russia suspected of evading sanctions

2024-02-27

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2024-02-27

Since the beginning of the Ukraine war, Swiss exports to countries close to Russia have increased significantly – which points to a possible evasion of sanctions.

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Young Socialists demand inheritance tax on ‘super rich’

2024-02-08

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2024-02-08

The wealthiest in society “must pay for the fight against the climate crisis”, said the group on Thursday as they handed in over 140,000 signatures for a people’s initiative.

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India eyes $100bn investment deal with Switzerland and Norway

2024-02-07

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2024-02-07

India is close to finalising a first-of-its-kind trade deal that could see a small group of European nations invest as much as $100 billion (CHF87 billion) over 15 years in exchange for easier trade access to the world’s most populous nation, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

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Switzerland marks start of China’s ‘high-level exchange’ with Europe

2024-01-15

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2024-01-15

Chinese Premier Li Qiang is visiting Switzerland this week. The official state visit by China’s second highest ranking official signals a renewal in Sino-Swiss ties and the kick-off of his “high-level exchange” with Europe. Here’s what you need to know about official Swiss-Chinese relations.

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Swiss banker pleads guilty to tax offences in the US

2023-12-22

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2023-12-22

A Swiss banker has pleaded guilty to tax offences in the United States. Between 2008 and 2014, he allegedly helped wealthy US clients hide their assets from the US authorities in accounts at Zurich-based Ihag Privatbank.

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Swiss budget agreed with humanitarian spending cut

2023-12-21

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2023-12-21

Switzerland’s parliament has finalised the 2024 budget after agreeing to a CHF10 million cut on humanitarian funding.

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Politicians want 75% of Swiss CO2 emissions to be cut at home

2023-12-20

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2023-12-20

Switzerland must reduce at least three-quarters of its carbon emissions in the Alpine country, the House of Representatives agreed on Wednesday.

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Swiss government data affected by cyber-attack on Basel firm

2023-11-14

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2023-11-14

The software company Concevis has been the victim of a cyber attack. Once again, federal government data is involved. The cybercriminals are threatening to publish the data on the darknet.

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Glencore buys Teck’s coal assets in billion dollar deal

2023-11-14

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2023-11-14

Commodities giant Glencore is taking control of Canadian Teck's steelmaking coal business.

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Zurich Airport hits pre-pandemic traffic level in October

2023-11-14

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2023-11-14

For the first time, the same number of passengers flew through Zurich Airport in October as before the coronavirus pandemic. The number of passengers rose significantly compared to the same month last year.

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Swiss Post readies for holiday rush amid slight parcel dip

2023-11-14

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2023-11-14

Black Friday, Cyber Monday and then Christmas shopping: many people in Switzerland will go on a shopping spree at the end of the year. However, Swiss Post is expecting a slightly lower flood of parcels this year than in 2022.

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Swiss rental prices for apartments continue to rise

2023-11-13

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2023-11-13

In Switzerland, rents for apartments on the market continued to rise in October. However, there were clear differences in the individual cantons. Across Switzerland, rents for new and re-rentable apartments - the so-called asking rents - rose by 0.4% in October compared to the previous month, according to the Homegate rent index published on Monday. The index advanced by 0.5 points to 123.8 points. 

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Swiss banks spend more on online advertising but lag in AI

2023-11-09

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2023-11-09

Retail banks have increased investment in digital marketing by 16% in a bid to attract younger clients. 

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Swiss government wants to lower licence fee to CHF300

2023-11-08

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2023-11-08

The government wants to reduce the annual radio and television licence fee from the current CHF335 ($372) to CHF300 by 2029. The turnover threshold for companies to qualify for exemption has been raised from CHF500,000 to CHF1.2 million.

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