Category Archive: 3.) Swissinfo Business and Economy

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Restaurants to re-open despite high Covid infection rate 

2021-04-15

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2021-04-15

The Swiss government has decided to allow outdoor tables in restaurants and bars again as of next Monday, following a four-month temporary closure. As part of its anti-Covid strategy, cultural and sports events will be open to the public under certain conditions, a government statement said. 

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Government approves accord with UK to ease trade for companies 

2021-04-14

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2021-04-14

The Swiss government has approved an agreement with Britain on mutual recognition of companies with “AEO” customs security approval, designed to facilitate trade. This agreement is “intended to reduce technical barriers to trade and facilitate trade with the United Kingdom for companies with AEO status”, according to a government press release on Wednesday. The accord has yet to be ratified by Britain. 

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Fighting the pandemic blues – S02E01

2021-04-13

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Last year, as the coronavirus pandemic hit Switzerland, and the rest of the world, we asked our readers and followers to look at the bright side of those dark times. With the pictures and videos they sent us we compiled a season made of six episodes, filled with tiny moments of joy.

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Government faces growing pressure to relax Covid measures

2021-04-13

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2021-04-13

Pressure is building on the Swiss government to ease restrictions imposed to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Federation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises on Monday called for a review of the current situation, saying the government was focusing too much on health while failing to consider the economic and financial impact of the restrictions.

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Study shows benefits of physical and cognitive play in dementia patients

2021-04-12

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2021-04-12

Elderly participants who trained regularly on a fitness device developed by a Swiss company showed improvements in cognitive skills, such as attention, concentration, memory and orientation. The study, carried out by an international team in two Belgian care homes, relied on a fitness game, known as “Exergame”, developed by a spin-off of the federal technology institute ETH Zurich.

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Lonza to create 1,200 new jobs at vaccine-production site

2021-04-12

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2021-04-12

The Swiss pharmaceutical company is recruiting workers to join its new plant in southern Switzerland, where three production lines have been set up to manufacture an active ingredient of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine.

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Foreign firms creating more jobs in Switzerland despite pandemic

2021-04-11

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2021-04-11

Switzerland has remained an attractive location for foreign firms, creating more jobs last year than in 2019 - despite the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Swiss public television SRF and RTS have reported.

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All electric pledge by Swiss car-sharing firm

2021-04-08

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2021-04-08

Car-sharing company Mobility says it will electrify its entire fleet of 3,000 vehicles and build a network of e-charging stations by 2030.

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Electric cars – how much cleaner are they?

2021-04-05

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Are electric vehicles really more eco-friendly than other types of cars? The Swiss TV consumer magazine ‘Kassensturz’ used a new climate calculator to find the answers, comparing the carbon footprints of electric cars with those of other types over the entire lifespan of the vehicles. The tool was developed by the Touring Club Switzerland (TCS) automobile association.--- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting...

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Switzerland asks EU for exception to vaccine export rules

2021-04-05

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2021-04-05

As of this week, Switzerland can no longer import Covid vaccines from the European Union (EU) without a special license. Officials in Bern have asked to be granted an exception to the stricter conditions.

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Swiss firms hold out hopes in US infrastructure upgrade

2021-04-04

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2021-04-04

US President Joe Biden’s major infrastructure plan is raising high hopes for Swiss firms in the construction and building industry. Although first contracts are expected to go to local firms, experts believe Swiss firms could score opportunities thanks to their specialisation and presence in the US market.

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Nestlé attacks food benefits of Brazilian workers during the pandemic

2021-04-03

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2021-04-03

The Swiss multinational is celebrating 100 years in Brazil but its poorest workers face food voucher cuts amid rising food prices caused by the pandemic. After a century of doing business in Brazil – Nestlé’s fifth largest market with CHF2.79 billion ($2.94 billion) in sales in 2020 – the Swiss food manufacturer faces the discontent of trade unions in the South American country. 

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Switzerland and ILO sign agreement on development cooperation

2021-04-02

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2021-04-02

Economics Minister Guy Parmelin and the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, have concluded an agreement on development cooperation. Parmelin, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, also announced that Switzerland had joined a global platform to combat child labour, forced labour and human trafficking, the government said on Thursday.

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Private sector joins government to protect ‘Swissness’ abroad

2021-04-01

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2021-04-01

Major industry associations have joined forces with public agencies to combat free-riders who abuse the “Swiss brand” abroad. The association for Swissness enforcement is intended to foster coordinated action against the wrongful use abroad of Swiss indications of source.

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The Swiss textile machinery industry has a China dilemma

2021-03-31

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2021-03-31

Amid allegations of forced labour involving Uyghur and other minorities in the garment supply chain, the Swiss textile machinery sector faces thorny questions about its ties to and reliance on China. In 2014, the same year the Swiss-China free trade deal went into force, a group of industry colleagues including a representative of the Swiss firm Uster Technologies visitedExternal link cotton gins and spinning mills in Xinjiang, Western China.

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Electric cars are on the way, but is Switzerland ready?

2021-03-30

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2021-03-30

Last year saw a surge in new electric vehicle (EV) sales worldwide and Switzerland was no exception. But the experience of frontrunner countries like Norway shows that some things will have to change if the Swiss electric car revolution is to keep pace in the years ahead and reduce carbon emissions.

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Credit Suisse and Nomura warn of losses after Archegos-linked sell-off

2021-03-30

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2021-03-30

Credit Suisse and Nomura have warned of large losses after a fire sale of about $20bn of Chinese and US stocks, as their client Archegos Capital Management was forced into a huge unwinding of assets.

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Credit Suisse warns of ‘highly significant’ loss linked to hedge fund

2021-03-29

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2021-03-29

The Swiss bank Credit Suisse says it may face a “highly significant” loss in the first quarter due to an unnamed American hedge fund client defaulting on margin calls. In a statement issued on Monday, the bank said: “While at this time it is premature to quantify the exact size of the loss resulting from this exit, it could be highly significant and material to our first quarter results”.

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Covid-19: Can Swiss artists survive on current support measures?

2021-03-29

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2021-03-29

The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the Swiss arts scene. Support measures have been introduced to “preserve cultural diversity” and some cantons have even launched monthly income support schemes for artists. But will these measures be enough?

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Swiss-EU relations hang in the balance

2021-03-23

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Discussions between the EU and Switzerland over the future of their bilateral relations could be on the verge of collapse. Over 100 bilateral treaties set the terms of relations between the two. These need updating. A framework agreement has been hammered out over seven years but there are sticking points and the deal is under fire from across the Swiss political spectrum. --- swissinfo.ch is the international branch of the Swiss Broadcasting...

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