On 22 June 2018, Switzerland won 2:1 against Serbia, following a 1:1 draw against Brazil last Sunday. Switzerland’s two goals were scored by Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri. Both of these Swiss players are of Kosovan descent, so winning against Serbia, a country that refuses to recognize Kosovo, would have had an additional emotional dimension […]
Archives for June 2018
Swiss residential property risks grow in buy-to-let, according to Swiss National Bank
On 21 June 2018, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) announced its decision on interest rates, which it left unchanged. Switzerland’s economy has been sailing into the headwinds of a strong currency since the SNB scrapped its exchange rate cap in January 2015 and the Swiss franc briefly went beyond parity with the euro. To weaken […]
Toilet tantrums – some Swiss toilets charge women more than men
Public toilets in some Swiss train stations charge 2 francs for a toilet and 1.5 francs for a urinal. The sit-down price is the same for both men and women, but given only men can use urinals, they have an option unavailable to women, to pay a bit less for a number one. Why the […]
FILM: 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON – celebrity in haunting black and white
22 June 2018. This week we have three distinct films about women, all by women directors. Germany/France; Egypt/Iran; Pakistan/Norway. Who said “it’s a man’s world”? 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON **** (vo German) This haunting black and white film feels more beige or grey, as were the convoluted emotions of Romy Schneider, the Austrian/German/French actress who […]
Geneva – “Stop cross-border worker” initiative falls before start line
An initiative, designed to end the “influx” of cross-border workers into Geneva, has failed to get enough signatures. In Switzerland, changes to the constitution or law can be presented to voters if enough signatures can be collected. Votes can be organized at commune, canton and federal levels. In Geneva, cantonal initiatives aimed at changing the […]
Pope’s visit to Geneva could create 1 million franc deficit
The Pope’s 21 June 2018 visit to Geneva is expected to cost CHF 2.2 million, according to RTS. These costs, which are spread over the rental of the venue and security, must be covered by the host diocese. Given the Vatican’s late announcement of the visit (in March 2018), local church leaders were not given […]
The price of solidarity – Switzerland’s inter-cantonal payments for 2019
In Switzerland, much in life revolves around the canton. Cantons have their own health, social and education systems, parliaments and tax rates. Federal government, based in Bern, is a layer that sits over the top, bringing the cantons together as Switzerland. For some cantons, nationhood has a cost. For others it means extra money. Every […]
Swiss meat consumption three times too high, according to new guidelines
On average, people in Switzerland eat 110g of meat every day. New Swiss guidelines suggest eating a third of this amount – an average American eats around 270g of meat a day. The new Swiss guidelines also recommend eating far fewer sugary and salty snacks and sugary and alcoholic drinks. On average four portions of […]
Football – Switzerland draws with Brazil
A tense match between Brazil and Switzerland last Sunday evening resulted in a 1:1 draw. This was quite a feat for Switzerland, considering Brazil was one of three widely agreed favorites going into the match – France and Germany were the other two. This was the first time since 1978 that Brazil failed to win […]
Swiss offshore wealth management sector still world’s largest by far
A report by The Boston Consulting Group highlights the size of Switzerland’s personal offshore wealth management sector. Total personal offshore wealth grew by 6% to reach US$8.2 trillion in 2017. US$2.3 trillion (28%) of this was managed in Switzerland. The top three offshore centres: Switzerland ($2.3 trillion), Hong Kong ($1.1 trillion) and Singapore ($0.9 trillion) […]