Category Archive: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

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Swiss among last to embrace wind and solar power 

2021-06-18

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2021-06-18

Switzerland is lagging behind most European countries when it comes to solar and wind power. In terms of per capita production, it ranks second to last in comparison with surrounding countries, according to the Swiss Energy Foundation (SES).

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Icy relations warm up in Geneva

2021-06-17

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The handshake between US-President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin between made headlines in Geneva on Wednesday. The atmosphere of their meeting was described as “warm”. The summit took place amid a huge security operation involving thousands of police and military personnel. The lake and parts of the city became no-go zones. swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC). Its role is...

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A plea to Swiss banks from the Russian Arctic

2021-06-17

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2021-06-17

Swiss banks might not be the most obvious allies for indigenous communities struggling to survive in Russia’s Far North. But their financial clout could drive multinationals to change their business practices, argue those affected by a major environmental disaster last year.

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Swiss hail ‘cordial’ talks with Biden

2021-06-16

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2021-06-16

Swiss President Guy Parmelin has underlined the importance of bilateral relations after a “cordial” meeting with US President Joe Biden. Parmelin also called Wednesday’s US-Russia meeting a “sign of hope”. Biden arrived in Geneva on Tuesday afternoon, ahead of the summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin.

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How Geneva is preparing for Biden and Putin

2021-06-15

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Geneva will be hosting the first presidential meeting between the American president Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Preparations are underway. As the host country, Switzerland will be deploying its good offices and taking all the necessary measures to ensure that talks, which start on June 16, can take place as safely and as discreetly as possible. Issues which have contributed to a rise in tensions between the United...

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SWISS airline job cuts less severe than expected

2021-06-15

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2021-06-15

Swiss International Air Lines will make fewer pandemic-related job cuts than feared following consultations with staff and trade unions. On Tuesday, SWISS said the number of intended layoffs has been reduced to 550 from the 780 announced last month. Of the 550 affected jobs, 58 employees have accepted a downgrade from their current positions so that they will remain with the company.

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Pesticide-free farming: can the vision seduce Swiss voters?

2021-06-14

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2021-06-14

Voters decide Sunday on two separate initiatives aiming to ban or reduce the use of synthetic pesticides in the country. Polls suggest the proposals are on the back foot. Is Switzerland about to become an organic farming pioneer?

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Switzerland-EU: a Complicated Relationship that puts Swiss Research at Risk

2021-06-13

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2021-06-13

They break up, they get back together, and then they break up again. The rift between Bern and Brussels over the framework agreement is causing frustration among Swiss researchers who depend on EU funding for their work. Universities, companies and start-ups fear that science and research will become "collateral damage" of a negotiation gone wrong.

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Switzerland plans subsidies to offset G7 corporate tax plan

2021-06-12

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2021-06-12

Swiss-based multinationals such as commodities trader Glencore will receive subsidies and other incentives under plans Switzerland is drawing up to maintain its competitive tax rates, even as the country prepares to sign-up to the G7’s new plan for a global minimum tax on big businesses.

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Child Labour rises for first time in two decades 

2021-06-10

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2021-06-10

The world has witnessed the first rise in child labour in 20 years and the coronavirus crisis threatens to push millions more minors into the same fate, the United Nations said on Thursday. Swiss multinationals from food giant Nestlé to mining titans Glencore and Trafigura have struggled to eradicate child labour from their supply chains and the communities where they work.

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How robot cars may transport freight under Switzerland

2021-06-08

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Cargo sous terrain, or underground cargo, is a futuristic Swiss freight project aimed at relieving pressure off existing roads and other infrastructure. The plan is to build a 500-kilometre network of tunnels linking production sites and logistics hubs in Switzerland’s biggest cities.

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Global minimum tax deal bad for Switzerland, say experts

2021-06-07

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2021-06-07

The decision by the leading industrial nations (G7) to support a global minimum tax of 15% for large corporations is not good news for Switzerland, according to Swiss economists. Certain cantons in particular would come under pressure.

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Electricity watchdog sounds warning on Swiss energy security

2021-06-06

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2021-06-06

The Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom) has again voiced concern about Switzerland’s ability to secure sufficient power supplies in the coming years. While there is no immediate danger of shortfalls in the Alpine state, the electricity watchdog said on Thursday that more should be done to ensure domestic energy security in the mid to long term.

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Cobalt must be included in Swiss responsible business legislation

2021-06-05

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2021-06-05

Business and human rights experts argue that Switzerland should seize the opportunity to require responsible sourcing of cobalt, an in-demand mineral whose risks to human rights are often overlooked. The government is holding consultations on a new law to hold companies accountable for the adverse impact of their operations on people after the Responsible Business Initiative failed at the ballot box last year.

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Futuristic underground cargo project moves a step closer to reality

2021-06-04

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2021-06-04

Goods that are normally trucked on busy Swiss roads are a step closer to travelling underground on driverless vehicles after an ambitious cargo project got a first legislative go-ahead. The Cargo sous terrain (CST) project sounds like science fiction: a 500-kilometre network of tunnels to transport freight between Switzerland’s busiest cities.

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Swiss Aviation Sector Aims to go Carbon Neutral by 2050

2021-06-02

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2021-06-02

The Swiss aviation sector, which includes Swiss International Air Lines and Zurich Airport, has pledged to slash CO2 emissions and make flying net zero by 2050.

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Swiss woman’s grandchildren held in Syrian camp

2021-06-01

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This is the story of a Swiss woman who desperately wants her grandchildren to be brought back from a Kurdish-controlled camp in Syria, even if it means taking them from their mother. Switzerland refuses to repatriate adult detainees from Syrian camps, a policy that effectively leaves seven Swiss children stranded in the war-torn country. Many detainees in the camps are suspected of having links to the Islamic State terror group, in northeastern...

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How Swiss Asset Managers Opened their Doors to Lex Greensill

2021-06-01

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2021-06-01

In late 2014, David Solo lent A$12.2 million (CHF8.5 million) to a little-known supply-chain finance group with eye-catching claims. Greensill Capital, which was trying to muscle in on a corner of finance dominated for decades by banks, vowed to make “finance fairer” and declared that it would be “democratising capital”.

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Dishonest Partial Unemployment Claims Alarm Swiss Auditors

2021-05-31

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2021-05-31

The Swiss Federal Audit Office says it is worried by a surge in fraud cases linked to the short-time working system, a key pillar of the country’s economic response to Covid-19. The office’s director Michel Huissoud told public radio SRF on Monday he was “shocked by the number of complaints, mistakes, and abuses” recorded to date.

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Swiss Campaign Heats up ahead of an Emotional Vote on Pesticides

2021-05-30

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2021-05-30

Death threats, insults, posters vandalised or set on fire: the campaign for two initiatives against pesticides to be put to the vote on June 13 is extremely tense. This toxic climate highlights a deep malaise in the Swiss agricultural world.

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