Tag Archive: Featured

New Swiss initiative to further restrict construction

Land use is strictly governed in Switzerland. However, a new initiative, which aims to increase construction restrictions further, recently gathered enough signatures to qualify for a a popular vote.

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EM Preview for the Week Ahead

EM FX took advantage once again of broad dollar weakness. Most EM currencies were up last week against the dollar, with the only exceptions being ARS, TRY, INR, THB, PEN, and MYR. We expect the dollar to remain under pressure this week and so EM should remain bid.

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Coronavirus: Geneva hospital calls for volunteers as numbers rise rapidly

On Sunday 25 October 2020, Geneva’s HUG hospital issued a call for volunteers as the number of Covid-19 patients rises rapidly. The hospital seeks medical, care and administrative volunteers to bolster and relieve their staff. In addition, they seek those who might have recently retired or who are on leave.

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Coronavirus: Germany adds Switzerland to risk list

Today, Germany announced it had added Switzerland to its list of Covid-19 risk countries, effective from 24 October 2020. Until now only certain Swiss cantons were on Germany’s list.

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US election: Red flags for investors

Outlook and wider impact. As showcased during the debates and in the entire campaign rhetoric, politicians in the US but also in Europe, are solely focused on promoting solutions that only serve to paper over the problems and address the symptoms of the disease.

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Swiss consumers want repair label on electronic appliances

No less than 98% of people polled by a consumer protection alliance are in favour of a labelling system that evaluates the repairability of electronic and household appliances. Most of them were also prepared to pay more for a product that offered specific repair guarantees.

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Consumer Confidence Indicator: Anesthesia

Europeans are growing more downbeat again. While ostensibly many are more worried about a new set of restrictions due to (even more overreactions about) COVID, that’s only part of the problem. The bigger factor, economically speaking, is that Europe’s economy has barely moved, or at most not moved near enough, off the bottom.

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How Decades of Media and Faculty Bias Have Pushed America to the Left

It’s been clear for decades that national news organizations such as CNN and the New York Times tend to be biased in favor of social democracy (i.e., “progressivism”) and what we would generally call a “left-wing” ideology.

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World Data Forum: strong international cooperation for quality data

22.10.2020 - The United Nations World Data Forum took place from 19 to 21 October 2020 in digital format due to COVID-19. The event brought together several thousand experts to find innovative solutions in order to meet the need for better quality data to implement the 2030 Agenda and to control the pandemic.

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Coronavirus: false positives rare, according to Swiss experts

There is an idea circulating that many of the positive PCR tests results for the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Switzerland are false, results which are known as false positives. However, according to experts interviewed by RTS, PCR test false positives are rare.

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Dollar Catches Modest Bid but Weakness to Resume

Geopolitical tensions have risen after US officials accused Russia and Iran of meddling in the elections; the dollar has caught a modest bid today. Stimulus talks continue; Pelosi warned that a deal may not come together before the November 3 election; whether Republican Senators change their minds after the elections depends on the outcome.

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Is the US Election the “Cork in the Bottle” for Gold and Silver?

Today we are taking our weekly look at the charts for gold and silver. Republicans and Democrats continue to play the “will they, won’t they?” game over another stimulus package in a Covid19 ravaged US economy. An agreement on a package will ultimately be seen as positive for the markets but, with the US Election just weeks away this may prove to prolong negotiations or postpone decisions until the results of the election are clear and...

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Central Banks and the Problem with Playing God

It seems the reach and influence of central banks has never been higher, yet they are increasingly flying blind in an environment where central bank tools are growing ever more imprecise and dangerous.

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FX Daily, October 22: Greenback Stabilizes

Two sets of talks have riveted attention, and both appeared to have made progress yesterday. After some words, the EC, recognizing the importance of UK sovereignty, UK Prime Minister Johnson signaled a resumption of trade talks.

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Occupational mobility: nearly 20 percent of employed persons left their job between 2018 and 2019

22.10.2020 - In Switzerland, 19.2% of people who pursued a professional activity left their job between 2018 and 2019. Mobility is particularly strong among young people, people with a fixed-term contract or working in the hotel and restaurant sector.

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Everything is Staged

All the staging is a means to an end, and everyone in America is nothing more than a means to an end: close the sale so the few can continue exploiting the many. You know how realtors stage a house to increase its marketability: first, they remove all evidence that people actually live there.

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Coronavirus: Switzerland hits new daily record

On 21 October 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 5,596, new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection over 24 hours.

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Coronavirus: Geneva hospital feels strain as number of patients rises

In Geneva, the number hospitalised with Covid-19 has reached 134, the highest it has been since the first wave in spring. On Friday 16 October 2020, there were 94 patients. This represents a jump of 43% in 3 days.

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Was Hoppe Wrong About Democracy?

Hans-Hermann Hoppe has shown in his writings on democracy that democracy leads to economic impoverishment and political disaster under certain conditions.  But what are those conditions, and are they dominant in electoral institutions in the United States today?

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FX Daily, October 21: Dollar Slumps as Yields Rise

Overview:  The dollar is falling against most of the world's currencies today, even as long-term yields rise to the most in four months and drags global yields higher.  The US 10-year yield is pushing above 0.80%, and the 30-year is above 1.60%. 

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