Le Matin. The controversy continues. Last week, two muslim pupils at a secondary school in Basel refused to shake their teacher’s hand. On Sunday, the Swiss broadcaster RTS, revealed a similar case at a school in Geneva. The incident occurred at the beginning of 2015 during a gym class. The teenager, who had recently converted […]
Archives for April 2016
Bank errors made one man a millionaire and others penniless
Odd things have been happening to people’s bank balances in Switzerland recently. In early April a customer of Bank Coop in Basel discovered he was a millionaire. Last week, many BCV (Banque Cantonale Vaudoise) customers found themselves penniless. According to 20 Minuten, a customer of Bank Coop found over 20 million francs in his account. […]
Geneva child care costs to drop by 20%
Tribune de Genève. The news was welcomed by some parents. “It’s great. I didn’t know” said one who was unaware that from the beginning of the next school year, the cost of Geneva city’s nurseries will drop 20%. The city’s administration recently approved the new prices, according to 20 Minutes. The 20% price reduction will apply […]
Finding Geneva’s markets – where and when in one click
Ville de Genève has put together an interactive page on their website showing where Geneva’s markets are, and when they are open. They are plotted on a map and can be filtered by day or type in a single click. There are fruit and vegetable (fruits et légumes), arts and crafts (artisanat), book (livres), flea […]
Planes, trains, drones and automobiles – Zurich by night
This short film by helvetiabynight.com starts with a cockpit view from an aircraft landing in Zurich at nightfall, before taking the viewer on an accelerated tour of the city. Cockpit footage was taken from a SWISS-Airbus, and drones were used to get aerial views of the city. The film, called Züri by night, was created […]
Swiss market up this week despite global decline
8 April 2016 – Swiss and global market roundup. Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The SMI is set to finish the week (+1.15%), significantly higher, having outperformed global equity markets (-1.13%), thanks to the strong performance of healthcare giants Novartis and Roche. Global equities fluctuated during the week receiving a boost towards the end of the […]
The Panama Papers – Geneva lawyers – shady companies and shady clients
Tribune de Genève. The following is a translated summary of an article published by the Geneva newspaper, Tribune de Genève, relating to the Panama Papers. They swear an oath to uphold the law. Yet it appears some Swiss lawyers haven’t. As the Panama Papers reveal, some of them have administered offshore companies for clients placed on […]
Film: Truth – how two top TV journalists had their careers destroyed
8 April 2016. TRUTH *** Let’s be honest – it’s the strong acting of Cate Blanchett and Robert Redford, and the rest of the accomplished cast, that makes this film especially worthwhile. But its recounting of the true incident in 2004 that cost the careers of two top television journalists in the U.S. is also […]
Glencore sells $2.5 billion stake in agriculture unit
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Canada’s largest pension fund agreed to pay $2.5 billion for a minority stake in Glencore Plc’s agriculture unit as the commodity trader and miner works to reduce its debt burden. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will acquire a 40 percent stake in the division which handles wheat, corn, barley, […]
Swiss chocolate giant beats analysts’ estimates
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Barry Callebaut AG, the low-profile maker of a quarter of the world’s chocolate, reported first-half earnings that beat estimates as it weeds out less profitable cocoa contracts. Earnings before interest and taxes dropped 8.4 percent to 201 million Swiss francs ($210 million) in the six months through February, weighed down […]