Swiss Info
Tue, 6 Sep 2022 08:09:00 GMTLeading Swiss energy company granted loan to avoid cash crisis
The government has agreed to give Axpo a maximum CHF4 billion ($4.1 billion) credit line in a bid to prevent a looming liquidity crisis for Switzerland’s leading energy company amid surging prices. Energy Minister Simonetta Sommaruga said the loan...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 14:53:00 GMTSwiss Digitals Days tackles IT talent shortage
The 2022 edition of the annual Swiss Digital Days national tour will this year attempt to foster greater enthusiasm for IT skills among school children. The IT industry and education sector has long identified a shortage of young IT talent as a prob...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 13:09:00 GMTRenewables share of electricity inches up in Switzerland
Some 80% of all electricity flowing from Swiss sockets originated from renewable energy sources last year, compared to 76% in 2020. Most renewable electricity came from hydropower plants (68%), followed by photovoltaics (11%), wind and biomass, acco...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 12:15:00 GMTSwiss economy slows but stays in the black
Switzerland’s economic output slowed to 0.3% between April and the end of June, compared to the first quarter of the year. The manufacturing, construction, trade and financial services sectors all showed signs of weakening in the face of energy sh...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 10:28:00 GMTRussia’s Sberbank Switzerland changes hands to new Swiss owner
The Swiss branch of Russia’s Sberbank has been sold to the Geneva-based m3 Groupe Holding company, freeing the bank from intensive supervision by Swiss financial regulator. Sberbank Switzerland was not directly sanctioned by the European Union, bu...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 09:19:00 GMTItalian boy dies in Swiss hiking accident
A 14-year-old Italian boy died on Sunday while hiking in the Blenio Valley mountain region in southern Switzerland. Two other teenagers who tried to save him were seriously injured. The Ticino cantonal police said the accident occurred shortly befor...
Mon, 5 Sep 2022 07:47:00 GMTCERN drafts plans to idle accelerators due to Europe’s energy crunch
Europe’s energy crisis is threatening to slow fundamental particle physics experiments at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), located near Geneva, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The newspaper reported on Sunday that...
Sun, 4 Sep 2022 09:55:16 GMTSteel mill applies for reduced working hours due to energy costs
High energy prices have forced a steel mill in Switzerland to prepare for short-time working to avoid layoffs. The Stahl Gerlafingen steel plant in the canton of Solothurn has been granted permission to resort to short-time working from October t...
Sun, 4 Sep 2022 09:05:55 GMTPrice watchdog critical of high Swiss bank charges
Over the past 20 years, fees charged by the banks have doubled making Swiss clients one of the worst off worldwide. In an interview published in the NZZ am Sonntag on Sunday, price watchdog Stefan Meierhans said he receives dozens of complaints abou...
Sat, 3 Sep 2022 14:02:07 GMTOldest known two-headed tortoise turns 25
Janus, a two-headed Greek tortoise and mascot of the Geneva Natural History Museum, is 25 years old. The tortoise has two heads, two hearts, two pairs of lungs and two stomachs. It is the oldest known double-headed tortoise in the world. “Even in...
Sat, 3 Sep 2022 11:36:07 GMTSwitzerland buys mobile gas turbines as energy backup for winter
The Swiss government has commandeered eight mobile gas turbines to strengthen the country's energy security. The procurement is the first contract signed under the governing Federal Council's recent agreement to provide for back-up power plants. Th...
Sat, 3 Sep 2022 08:45:00 GMTBumper season for Swiss ski industry but tough winter ahead
While ski resort visits and turnover reached record levels last season, inflation and lifting of Covid restrictions may hurt the Swiss ski industry. For the first time in ten years, Swiss ski resorts recorded more than 25 million skier-days last se...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 15:30:00 GMTRoche inaugurates Switzerland’s tallest building
Pharmaceutical giant Roche inaugurated Switzerland’s tallest building on Friday. The 205-metre-tall structure in Basel, known as Building 2, will house 3,500 workers. The new high rise surpasses the firm’s nearby tower – Building 1 – which s...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 13:53:00 GMTScientists identify key hormone that may help people with Down's syndrome
Regular doses of a widely used fertility drug may help to boost cognitive skills in people with Down’s syndrome, a pilot study led by researchers from France and Switzerland has suggested. In a small-scale trial, researchers fitted seven men who h...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 11:33:00 GMTSwitzerland approves Novavax’s Covid vaccine for 12-18 year olds
Swiss medical regulator Swissmedic has approved Novavax’s Nuvaxovid Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 12-18 years. The greenlight has also been given for its use as a booster for adults, ahead of an anticipated rise in infections this winter. “...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 09:59:47 GMTUnions call for 4-5% wage increase amid rising inflation
Swiss trade unions are calling on employers to increase real wages in response to rising inflation and higher energy prices. On Friday, Pierre-Yves Maillard, President of the Swiss Trade Union Federation (USS), told reporters that increasing wages i...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 09:49:00 GMTUN Xinjiang report points to possible crimes against humanity
The United Nations Human Rights Office in Geneva has found “credible evidence” of torture and sexual violence against the Uyghur minority in western China. The Chinese government has rejected the findings calling them a “farce”. The “exten...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 09:18:00 GMTAlbert Einstein’s doctoral certificate returns to Zurich
The original doctoral certificate belonging to Albert Einstein has returned to the University of Zurich thanks to a donation. The theoretical physicist’s certificate, dating from 1906, is now on display in the entrance hall of university’s main ...
Fri, 2 Sep 2022 07:40:36 GMTCredit Suisse reportedly slashing 5,000 jobs globally
Embattled Swiss bank Credit Suisse is planning to cut around 10% of its workforce as part of a major cost cutting drive, according to several media reports. Reuters reported on Thursday that someone with direct knowledge of the matter indicated that...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 15:13:21 GMTMovie streaming giants gain ground in Switzerland
Movie streaming services Netflix, Disney+ and Spotify have accumulated 6.5 million Swiss subscribers between them in Switzerland, having added 400,000 new customers last year. Netflix broke three million users last year, according to a survey of Swi...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 14:34:00 GMTSwiss bank takes plunge into the metaverse
Swiss digital assets bank Sygnum will open a branch in the metaverse to reach more clients seeking blockchain-based financial services. Sygnum was one of two banks that were awarded licenses in 2019 to connect traditional finance with cryptocurrenci...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 13:31:00 GMTFate of Sberbank’s Swiss branch still hangs in balance
The Swiss financial regulator has extended a moratorium on transactions at the Swiss branch of Russia’s Sberbank group as it decides on its future course. The Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) imposed the measures in March to prevent ...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 13:04:00 GMTIslamic State suspects arrested during Swiss police raids
Two suspected members of Islamic State have been arrested in Switzerland as part of a series of coordinated police raids in western Switzerland. Four houses were searched in cantons Vaud and Geneva on Thursday after warrants were issued by the Offic...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 12:26:22 GMTSwiss feel sicker than during pandemic
More Swiss people are feeling unwell this year than during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, a national survey suggests. Some 35% of respondents reported being under the weather in June compared to 27% last year and 25% in 2020. The sentiment has ...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 10:17:14 GMTGreenpeace: Swiss pension funds complicit in deforestation
A Greenpeace Switzerland report claims that 5% of Swiss pensions are invested in companies that contribute to deforestation. The report, published on Thursday, estimates that Swiss pension funds contribute around CHF60 billion ($61 billion) to compa...
Thu, 1 Sep 2022 09:46:00 GMTInflation continues to bite in Switzerland
The cost of goods and services in Switzerland rose 3.5% in August compared to the same month last year, but the inflation rate still remains below that of many other countries. Prices for imported goods leapt 8.6%, according to the Federal Statistic...
Wed, 31 Aug 2022 14:51:00 GMTSwitzerland confirms UN Security Council priorities
Switzerland will use its historic seat on the United Nations Security Council to promote sustainable peace and the protection of civilians in conflict regions, address climate security and promote greater transparency at the UN body. Switzerland wil...
Wed, 31 Aug 2022 14:02:00 GMTSwiss population urged to save energy to mitigate winter shortages
The Swiss government has appealed to the population to save on household energy ahead of anticipated electricity and gas shortages this winter. On Wednesday, the government launched a campaign entitled “Energy is scarce, let’s not waste it” al...
Wed, 31 Aug 2022 10:15:00 GMTSwitzerland’s EU ‘cohesion’ payment targets eight countries
Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Malta and Poland will benefit from CHF1.1 billion ($1.13 billion) in Swiss funding, as part of an agreement with the European Union. The so-called ‘cohesion’ payment will fund a range of projects in t...
Wed, 31 Aug 2022 09:20:24 GMTCovid-related mental health problems persist in young people
More than two years after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, many adolescents and young adults still have psychological problems. Many suffer from depression, social withdrawal, fatigue, mood swings, physical pain such as headaches and fear of t...