Before streaming, topping the Christmas charts was based on the sales of singles in the run up to Christmas. That was in 1984. Now it’s 2023 and it is based on the number of streams in the week leading up to midnight on 21 December. This year, the winner was the Wham! classic Last Christmas, […]
2023 Switzerland’s second warmest year since measurements began
The weather in Switzerland in 2023 was volatile. 2023 began mildly with highs of around 20 °C and a pronounced lack of snow in the mountains. Spring brought record rain, and summer began with the lowest rainfall since measurements began. Heat waves followed by heavy rainfall fell on southern and eastern Switzerland in July and […]
Switzerland and UK agree post-Brexit financial services trade deal
More than seven years after a slim majority (51.9%) of the UK electorate voted to leave the EU, Switzerland and the UK have agreed a deal that clears the way to more open cooperation in the financial services sector, helping to restore the pre-Brexit arrangement between the two nations. On Thursday, Switzerland and the UK […]
The Swiss company using car batteries to store solar
Households typically need most electricity in the evening after the sun has set. This means the solar electricity created during the day needs to be stored somewhere. The challenge with car batteries is the need for high performance. Cars need range and rapid power delivery. This means car batteries with less than 80% of the […]
The Swiss link to the Wham Christmas song
How the music video for 80’s hit song “Last Christmas” by the group Wham came to be filmed in Saas-Fee in Switzerland is a story of chance. According to Blick, roughly a year before the video was shot, Beat Anthamatten, director of the Grand Hotel Walliserhof in Saas-Fee, met one of the crew filming a […]
Switzerland moves forward on EU discussions
On 15 December 2023, Switzerland’s Federal Council approved a draft negotiating mandate with the EU. Negotiations should begin as soon as the EU and Swiss government definitively approve the mandate, reported SRF. The draft mandate is the result of around 70 meetings between Switzerland and the EU at various levels.The document creates the conditions required […]
Swiss central bank leaves interest rate unchanged
On 14 December 2023, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) said it was ending its interest rate tightening cycle after a clear slowdown in inflation. With inflation rising more slowly than the central bank’s 2% ceiling (it was 1.4% in November 2023), the SNB left its key interest rate at 1.75% for a second consecutive meeting. […]
Swiss car insurance to rise 15% in 2024
With all of the price hikes in Switzerland it is difficult to believe inflation is running at around 2% (it was 1.4% in November 2023). Health insurance premiums in 2024 are on average 8.7% higher than they were in 2023. Now Swiss car insurance is set to get more costly. The insurance advisor VZ predicts […]
Iranian president cancels Geneva trip after arrest petition
Three Iranians living in Switzerland requested the arrest of Ebrahim Raïssi, Iran’s president who was scheduled to visit Geneva on Wednesday, reported RTS. Raïssi later cancelled his visit, reported the newspaper Le Temps. Three Iranians, supported by more than 300 petitioners, requested the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) arrest the president while […]
Switzerland’s cabinet changes at a glance
This week, votes were cast to reshape Switzerland’s cabinet, known as the Federal Council. The high profile Alain Berset, minister of health during the Covid-19 pandemic, was replaced and a new chancellor was elected, reported SRF. Beat Jans, Basel-Stadt Socialist Party district president Beat Jans will succeed Alain Berset and Viola Amherd will be Federal […]
