Category Archive: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

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Making prosthetic limbs from recycled bottles

2020-11-25

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Recycling plastic to make new bottles is one thing, but using the material to create prosthetic limbs? That's another. Two Swiss designers are using their skills to improve the lives of amputees.

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Nuclear plant worker’s cancer judged not to be a work-related illness

2020-11-20

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2020-11-20

The Federal Court has dismissed the appeal of a former employee of two Swiss nuclear power plants who was diagnosed with bladder and prostate cancer. The man took legal action after the national accident insurance fund refused benefits for an occupational illness.

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What is a Swiss multinational company and what’s their role in the economy?

2020-11-19

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Switzerland is home to big players in the raw materials, food and chemicals industries. The alpine country boasts one of the world’s highest concentrations of multinational headquarters. You might wonder: where does its attractiveness come from? Switzerland offers many advantages to large businesses: economic stability, a strong financial sector, qualified workers, a geographic location at the heart of transport networks – and an advantageous tax...

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Why big companies fear the Responsible Business Initiative

2020-11-18

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2020-11-18

Big multinationals in Switzerland have been nearly unanimous in their rejection of an initiative to make companies more accountable for their actions abroad. What are they afraid of?

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Swiss start-up generates electricity from wind power

2020-11-17

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Switzerland produces less wind power than other European countries but has ambitious future targets. A Lugano start-up is developing drones to generate electricity from high-altitude winds. Winds, especially at high altitude, offer huge potential as an alternative renewable energy source to help solve the climate crisis.  In Switzerland, the main source of energy is hydropower. Building large wind turbines, especially in Swiss valleys, is...

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Ex-Credit Suisse boss recruited by Rwandan government

2020-11-16

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2020-11-16

Tidjane Thiam, who resigned as CEO of Swiss bank Credit Suisse in February, has been tasked with using his connections to build up the Rwandan capital Kigali as an international business location, according to Swiss business newspaper Handelszeitung.

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Will vaccination campaign convince hesitant Swiss?

2020-11-16

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2020-11-16

Faced with considerable public scepticism towards a Covid-19 vaccine, the Federal Office of Public Health is preparing an information campaign about vaccinations. However, the country’s top hospital hygienist thinks offering incentives is a better way to make people get a jab.

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Vote November 29: Spotlight on ethical business practices

2020-11-15

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2020-11-15

A proposal to make Swiss-based multinationals accountable for their business practices abroad is tabled for a nationwide vote on November 29. An initiative aimed at restricting investments in the arms industry is the second issue on the ballot sheet. 

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Swiss advance plans to take goods transport underground

2020-11-15

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2020-11-15

Building a 500-km tunnel network to transport goods under Central Switzerland is the ambitious aim of the “Cargo Sous Terrain” project. The vision has moved closer to reality since the Swiss government brought forward enabling legislation last month.

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‘Artificial intelligence won’t replace humans’

2020-11-14

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2020-11-14

Artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining ground in our societies, posing a threat to jobs and increasingly invading our private lives. A new centre for AI research at the federal technology institute ETH Zurich wants to put people at the centre of its work.

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Swiss multinationals: global heavyweights in high-risk sectors

2020-11-12

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2020-11-12

Home to big players in the raw materials, food and chemicals industries, Switzerland boasts one of the world’s highest concentrations of multinational headquarters.

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Raiffeisen pulls out of Swiss Bankers Association

2020-11-11

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2020-11-11

Raiffeisen, Switzerland’s third-largest banking group, says it will leave the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) at the end of March 2021. It intends to represent its interests independently.

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A defender of Eritreans’ human rights

2020-11-10

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Immigration affects everyone in Switzerland, but some people more directly than others. Veronica Almedom, who arrived from Eritrea as a baby with her family, is now an activist for the human rights of Eritreans. Almedom grew up in Martigny in French-speaking Switzerland and is now a student at the University of Geneva. Since 2016 she has been a member of the Federal Commission on Migration. Since 2017 Switzerland has steadily tightened its...

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Swiss investors still leaning heavily on fossil fuels

2020-11-10

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2020-11-10

The Swiss financial market invests too much in oil and coal production, according to a review of nearly 200 financial institutions.

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Shareholders call for new priorities for manager salaries

2020-11-07

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2020-11-07

Shareholders in Switzerland want a rethink on how managers are paid and demand that priorities regarding corporate governance, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) be redefined, a survey has found.

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Zurich prosecutor charges former Raiffeisen bank chief Vincenz

2020-11-05

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2020-11-05

The Zurich public prosecutor has accused the ex-CEO of Swiss bank Raiffeisen Pierin Vincenz of fraud, embezzlement and bribery following a two-year criminal investigation.

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Which US president would be best for Swiss business?

2020-11-05

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2020-11-05

Swiss-US trade has been booming in recent years. Would it be better for the Alpine country to stick with the current set-up or trust in a potentially more conciliatory new American president?  

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Meet me at the the online ‘piazza’!

2020-11-04

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A woman living in a southern Swiss town noticed that people around her felt isolated and wanted to connect and share things but didn't know how. So she created the "smart village": a virtual town square. Monica Rush Solcà from the Italian-speaking region of Ticino set up a platform where people can meet and share things. The concept was later used in other towns in the region, with group members hosting events to advertise the service....

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Novartis boosts involvement in anti-Covid treatment

2020-10-31

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2020-10-31

The biotech company and the pharmaceutical giant want to develop and market a drug with a unique approach for the prevention and treatment of Covid-19.

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Swiss select ex-central banker for OECD top post

2020-10-30

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2020-10-30

The Swiss government has nominated Philipp Hildebrand, a former head of the country’s central bank, to lead the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

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