Tag Archive: Business

Complaint filed against Federer and other Instagram influencers

2019-06-27

by

2019-06-27

A Swiss consumer protection organisation has filed a complaint against Swiss tennis star Roger Federer and several other celebrity “influencers”, accusing them of “stealth advertising” on Instagram and other social media sites.

Read More »

Federal fat cats see bonuses fall  

2019-06-26

by

2019-06-26

The salaries of top managers at Swiss government-affiliated companies shrank last year due to smaller bonuses, according to a federal report published on Friday. Top state earner, Andreas Meyer, head of Swiss Federal Railways, saw his earnings fall below CHF1 million for the first time: down to CHF987,442 ($1 million) from CHF1,007,000 in 2017, the report found.

Read More »

Smartphone shopping boosts online trade

2019-06-24

by

2019-06-24

Online shopping accounts for an ever bigger slice of the Swiss retail market as shopping via smartphone also becomes more popular with consumers, says a new report. Last year, Swiss consumers placed online orders worth a total of almost CHF 10 billion ($10 billion), according to the "E-Commerce Report 2019" published on Thursday. This represents an increase of 10 percent compared with the previous year.

Read More »

A third of young Swiss experience financial hardship

2019-06-21

by

2019-06-21

Around 30% of young adults in Switzerland have faced financial difficulties, according to data from the Young Adult Survey Switzerland (YASS). The survey, which questions some 70,000 19-year-olds around the country every four years, aims to gain an “empiric and interdisciplinary insight” into the “educational biographies, living conditions and social and political orientations” of young Swiss adults.

Read More »

General Electric to slash 450 more Swiss jobs

2019-06-20

by

2019-06-20

United States engineering giant General Electric has revealed it will cut a further 450 jobs at two of its Swiss sites. Since 2016, the company has already shed some 2,000 workers. The company, which generated profits of $954 million (CHF952 million) last year, blamed the latest cuts on “financially challenging conditions”. But its GE Power division reported an operating loss of nearly $1 billion globally.

Read More »

Swiss gold refinery turns back on artisanal miners

2019-06-19

by

2019-06-19

Swiss gold refinery Metalor Technologies has announced it will no longer deal with artisanal mining operations. The company cites the increasing cost of ensuring that gold is being produced by small mines in compliance with human rights and environmental standards. Metalor has come under repeated fire for doing business with gold mines in South America that care neither for their workers or surrounding habitat.

Read More »

Saab withdraws from Swiss fighter jet test flights

2019-06-15

by

2019-06-15

Saab’s Gripen E fighter jet will not participate in tests this month in Switzerland, the Swedish company said on Thursday. This follows a recommendation by the Swiss defence procurement agency (armasuisse). “The Gripen E development plan does not match the Swiss plan to perform flight tests with aircraft that are operationally ready in 2019,” Saab said in a statement.

Read More »

Swiss government predicts moderate economic growth in 2019

2019-06-13

by

2019-06-13

The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) is expecting the Swiss economy to grow by +1.2% in 2019, it said on Thursday. It revised its economic forecast upwards slightly from +1.1% in March, following 0.6% growth in the first quarter thanks to vigorous domestic demand.

Read More »

Swiss regulator fines banks over improper forex trading

2019-06-07

by

2019-06-07

The Swiss Competition Commission (COMCO) has fined five international banks for their involvement in the formation of cartels that manipulated the foreign exchange market. COMCO fined Barclays, Citigroup, JPMorgan, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the MUFG Bank a total of CHF90 million ($90.6 million) for “anti-competitive arrangements between banks in foreign exchange spot trading”.

Read More »

Plastic bag use continues to drop 

2019-06-06

by

2019-06-06

Consumption of single-use plastic bags in some 30 Swiss food retailers has dropped 86% since they introduced a small charge in 2016. The charge of CHF0.05 (an American nickel) per bag was introduced voluntarily under a sectoral agreement in response to a parliamentary move that would have banned single-use plastic bags.

Read More »

Swiss Post processes 800,000 parcels per day

2019-06-05

by

2019-06-05

The number of packages processed by the Swiss Post office’s three parcel centres has been rising steadily since they opened 20 years ago. During that time, the centres in Härkingen, Daillens and Frauenfeld have handled more than 3.1 billion packages.

Read More »

Competition watchdog takes closer look at Sunrise-UPC deal

2019-06-04

by

2019-06-04

COMCO, the Swiss Competition Commission, is to intensify its investigation of telecoms operator Sunrise’s takeover of UPC Switzerland, amid fears that the move could create positions of market dominance in several areas.

Read More »

Fewer Swiss farms and dairy cows, more egg-layers and goats

2019-06-02

by

2019-06-02

Last year 768 farmers in Switzerland called it quits, while others increased their livestock numbers and production of organic food. Figures released this week by the Swiss Federal Statistical Officeexternal link revealed a 1.5% drop in the number of farms, bringing the total down to 50,852. However, the number of certified organic farms rose by about 400 to 7,032.

Read More »

Switzerland a top place for skilled foreign workers and students

2019-06-01

by

2019-06-01

Switzerland is one of the most attractive locations for highly qualified foreign workers, according to a new study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In a ranking of 35 countries presented on Wednesday, Switzerland comes third behind Australia and Sweden as an attractive destination for skilled workers with a Masters degree or doctorate.

Read More »

Switzerland ranked world’s fourth most competitive economy

2019-05-31

by

2019-05-31

Switzerland is Europe’s most competitive nation, coming fourth in the annual global ranking of the Lausanne-based IMD business school. The small Alpine nation climbed from fifth to fourth place in the 63-country competitiveness ranking. It was helped by economic growth, the stability of the Swiss franc and high-quality infrastructure, IMD said on Tuesday.

Read More »

Ranking finds Switzerland lagging on wind power

2019-05-30

by

2019-05-30

In a comparison of European solar and wind power generation, Switzerland ranks near the bottom. Per year and inhabitant, Switzerland produces 250 kilowatt hours of solar (236kWh) and wind (14kWh) power – the amount needed to power a dishwasher, roughly. This puts Switzerland in 25th place when compared with the 28 European Union nations, according to a study published by the Swiss Energy Foundation (SES) on Wednesday.

Read More »

Swiss Trains Test Free Mobile Internet Access

2019-05-29

by

2019-05-29

Swiss Trains Mobile Internet Access
The Swiss Federal Railways has started testing free mobile internet based on 3G/4G coverage on the main train routes. However, it does not cover all Swiss operators. The state-owned company has started testing the service on 44 Intercity trains between Zurich and Geneva, St Gallen and Lausanne, and from Basel to Biel, the federal railways announced on Tuesday in a statementexternal link.

Read More »

Chinese firms stole sensitive data from Swiss-based competitor

2019-05-28

by

2019-05-28

Swiss investigators have broken up a Chinese industrial spying scheme that stole hundreds of sensitive documents from a technology company in Switzerland, reports the SonntagsZeitung newspaper. Prosecutors confirmed that a technician was fined for his part in the affair.

Read More »

Swiss authorities intervene to halt exports of nuclear weapons material

2019-05-27

by

2019-05-27

Federal authorities are stepping up efforts to prevent the sale of Swiss machinery that could be used to develop nuclear weapons. The latest interventions concern direct sales to the US and France. According to reports by the German-language newspaper NZZ am Sonntag, the federal export group halted the export of suspicious machinery to the US two times last year.

Read More »

Swiss pay more for magazines and clothes than other countries

2019-05-26

by

2019-05-26

Swiss consumers pay a “high price island” premium of up to 245% for magazines and clothing compared to prices being charged for the same goods in neighbouring countries. A consumer group study found the price differential to be higher in Italy and France than in Germany. For many people living in Switzerland the findings of the Swiss Alliance of Consumer Associations, together with watchdogs in the French and Italian-speaking regions of the...

Read More »