In the third quarter of 2016, Swiss exports reached CHF 52.5 billion, 8.1% higher than they were for the same period in 2015, according to statisticians in Bern. Industries contributing to the rise were jewellery and precious metals (+21%) and pharmaceuticals (+17%). The industry showing the most negative shift was watchmaking (-8%). Stronger pharmaceuticals exports […]
SMI underperforms global stocks
21 October 2016 – Swiss and global market roundup. Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The Swiss Market Index is set to finish the week largely unchanged while global stocks gain on positive US third quarter earnings results, favourable central bank statements and a rallying oil price. The S&P 500 saw its biggest advance since September on Wednesday […]
Roche revenue gains as sales of breast cancer drugs soar
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Roche Holding AG’s third-quarter revenue rose 4.5 percent as its trio of breast-cancer therapies offset stagnating sales of some of its older drugs. Sales climbed to 12.5 billion Swiss francs ($12.6 billion), the Basel, Switzerland-based company said in a statement on Thursday. That compared with the 12.6 billion-franc average […]
Nestle forecasts slowest sales growth in decade as pricing ebbs
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Nestle SA forecast the slowest full-year sales growth in more than a decade as food companies worldwide struggle against consumer resistance to price increases. Revenue will gain about 3.5 percent on an organic basis in 2016, the Vevey, Switzerland-based maker of Nespresso coffee said Thursday, abandoning a goal for […]
Swiss support gay marriage but not so keen on adoption according to recent survey
According to recent survey results published by Pink Cross, around 7 out of 10 of those interviewed in a Swiss poll were in favour of same sex marriage. The results were stable and in line with the last survey. 69% responded favourably to the question: “Should civil union be open to homosexual couples?” 25% were […]
Perpetrator of false bomb alert at Geneva airport gets prison sentence
Tribune de Genève. Last week a man arrived at Geneva airport at 1pm and told staff at the Aeroflot counter there was a bomb on board the plane he was attempting to board. The 39 year old man arrived late and his flight to Moscow was about to take off. Taking the threat seriously, the […]
Something far worse than parking wardens arrives in Geneva
Tribune de Genève. Yesterday, a specially equipped car started sweeping through Geneva’s boulevards photographing and recording car licence plates. The owners of those found to be parked without valid tickets will be sent a fine. The car, adorned with special camera equipment invented by the Dutch firm Arvoo, is faster and more systematic than its human […]
Swiss fact: Zurich has Switzerland’s sixth highest percentage of foreign residents
In 2015, 25.5% of Switzerland’s population were foreign, or one in four. However, foreigners were not spread evenly across the country. The canton with the highest percentage of non-Swiss living within its borders was Geneva, where 42.1% of the population lived without a Swiss passport. Next on the list were the cantons of Basel-City (36.2%), […]
Frankenstein’s monster spotted in Geneva at his first murder site
By Bill Harby Beware: Dr. Frankenstein’s creature still lurks in Geneva. In 2014 he returned to the scene of his first murder in the Plainpalais quarter, and there he still stands near the skatepark, a fearsome hulk, an expression on his face halfway between horror and grief, oblivious to the shocked stares of passersby surprised […]
Higher education gap between men and women shrinks dramatically in Switzerland
The higher education gap between men and women has shrunk dramatically according a recent analysis by the Swiss statistics office. The study, which looks at census figures from 1970 to 2014, shows big changes between 2000 and 20141. In 2000, the percentage of men (13%) with a university education was more than twice that of women (6%). By […]
