On 28 September 2025, Switzerland voted on two contentious matters: a state-run electronic identity (e-ID) and a revamp of property taxation. Both were approved, though one only just. The e-ID Act scraped through with 50.4% in favour and 49.6% against – narrower than polls had suggested. And, only 7.5 out of 26 cantons were in […]
Novartis responds to Trump’s 100% tariffs on drugs
Donald Trump has vowed to slap 100% tariffs on pharmaceutical imports to America from 1 October 2025. The measure, announced in a fleeting post on Truth Social, will apply to patented medicines, though generics appear exempt. Other imports will also be hit: kitchen and bathroom furniture (50%), upholstered furniture (30%) and heavy trucks (25%). The […]
The Federal Council wants to tax electric cars from 2030
Switzerland’s Federal Council intends to tax electric cars from 2030 to make up for shrinking fuel-tax revenues, reported SRF. Two models are on the table: a levy per kilometre driven or a surcharge on the electricity used to charge vehicles. Either would require a constitutional amendment, meaning approval from both voters and cantons. The logic […]
Swiss National Bank pauses interest rate cuts
After six consecutive cuts, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) has left its key rate unchanged at 0%. It also reaffirmed its willingness to intervene in foreign-exchange markets if needed. Inflationary pressures, it noted, remain broadly stable. The bank will keep a close eye on the data and adjust policy as required to safeguard price stability. […]
Swiss student unsettles operators with map plotting mobile antenna
Comparing mobile networks was made easier this week. Swiss student Leutrim Shallti has built a website —carteantennesuisse.ch—that pinpoints every 3G, 4G and 5G antenna in the country. Consumers can now check whether operators’ marketing boasts match reality. Shallti is no telecom engineer— he is a psychology student who studies electronics for three years prior. Yet […]
Swiss government sets out ambitious spending cuts
Switzerland’s federal government must save CHF 2.4 billion in 2027 and CHF 3 billion in both 2028 and 2029. On Friday the Federal Council sent its austerity plan to parliament, reported RTS. The Council of States will debate it in the winter session; the National Council will follow in the spring. The country’s public finances […]
Swiss upper house says no to daycare initiative
Switzerland’s Council of States has rejected a popular initiative on subsidised childcare but endorsed a watered-down alternative, reported SRF. The initiative, backed by the Social Democrats, Greens, Centre Party, Green Liberals and trade unions, would entitle every child from the age of three months until the end of primary school to supplementary childcare. Parents’ contributions […]
Swiss minister heads to Washington to relaunch trade talks
Guy Parmelin, Switzerland’s economics minister, has travelled to Washington to present a revised proposal aimed at ending a long-running customs spat with the United States, reported RTS on 5 September 2025. His colleague, Ignazio Cassis, the foreign minister, confirmed during a visit to Reichenau that Bern had developed an optimised offer for Washington. The trip […]
Swiss Post stops sending parcels to America
This week, Swiss Post announced it would stop accepting parcels bound for America from 26 August 2025. The suspension, which follows similar moves by other European postal operators, stems from new American customs rules requiring every package—regardless of size or value—to be declared and cleared. Letters, documents and express deliveries remain unaffected. The change follows […]
Did Swiss president’s lecturing scupper US tariff negotiations?
Did a phone call with Switzerland’s president provoke Donald Trump into slapping punitive tariffs on the country? According to SonntagsBlick, citing unnamed American sources, Karin Keller-Sutter, Switzerland’s president, so irritated the US president during an exchange on 31 July 2025, that he imposed a 39% tariff on Swiss goods—the highest rate imposed on any developed […]
