Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Could Swiss banks start charging retail depositors negative interest? One already has. More might follow. In mid January 2015 the Swiss National Bank (SNB) started charging negative interest on certain deposits placed with it in an attempt to make holding Swiss francs less attractive. After abruptly abandoned its currency […]
Archives for 2015
Neuchatel bans nativity scene from town’s Christmas tree
Le Matin. Carved statues of Mary, Joseph and Jesus have been removed from under Neuchâtel’s town Christmas tree because the town doesn’t want to be associated with religious symbols. “The town’s Christmas tree shouldn’t be associated with religious symbols. It’s everyone’s tree, all citizens, non-religious and religious” said commune councillor Olivier Arni to archinfo.ch. The […]
Swiss economy unexpectedly stagnated in 3rd quarter
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Swiss economic growth unexpectedly stalled in the third quarter, with momentum held back by weak performance in the energy, construction and financial sector. Output was unchanged in the three months through September, after increasing of 0.2 percent in the prior period, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs in Bern […]
Median Swiss salary up and well ahead of the US and UK
Switzerland’s median gross salary rose in the two years to 2014. 50% of salary earners earn less than the median while 50% earn more. In addition, the gap between the top 10% of earners and the bottom 10% shrunk. The Swiss median salary climbed to CHF 6,189 per month. This represents CHF 74,268 annually and […]
Switzerland turns away hundreds of Afghan refugees
Tribune de Genève. Around 1,800 refugees have been intercepted trying to cross into Switzerland over the last four weeks, and almost a quarter have been sent back to Germany, which has a policy of favouring Syrians. Swiss border guards have stopped around 1,800 refugees along Switzerland’s northern border over the last four weeks. 444 have been […]
Swiss post to stop selling sweets
Le Matin. After much criticism Swiss Post will stop selling sweets in post offices. It will continue to sell products such as books and stationary, which are related to its other services. The sale of third party products generates around CHF 500 million for the company annually. After several vocal complaints the issue was taken […]
Fly like a bird over Lausanne and beyond
Lausanne-based Brosky Media created this stunning three minute video of Vaud’s capital city, Lausanne. Watching this it is easy to imagine why Lord Byron, who lived there from 1788 to 1824, James Mason, who lived there from 1963 to 1984, and Coco Chanel, who lived there from 1945 to 1971, all chose the city. Some […]
Video of skier who plans to ski down 15 Swiss peaks over 4,000 metres
A new film called “La Liste”, starring 26 year old Jérémie Heitz, charts the history and evolution of steep skiing. Planned for release in 2016, the film will show the skier descending 15 Swiss peaks over 4,000 metres in his home canton of Valais. The film trailer below shows the incredible steepness and speed of his […]
Hotel de Londres, Brig, Switzerland
Brought to you by Hotel de Londres. Melissa Van Roosbroeck recently visited Hotel de Londres in Brig, Switzerland to chat with the owners about the hotel’s history and recent renovation. Can you tell us a bit more about the history and background of Hotel de Londres and its link to England? The name of our […]
A volatile week for Swiss stocks
27 November 2015 – Weekly Swiss and global market roundup. Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The SMI is set to end the week slightly lower on Friday after losing almost all of last week’s 3% gain early in the week before rebounding on Thursday and Friday. Trading was mixed on Stock markets across the […]
