Author: switzerlandtimes.ch

Not all Swiss cantons are equally exposed to America’s new tariff regime. Some—particularly those with close industrial or economic ties to the United States—stand to lose far more than others, reported RTS. Nidwalden tops the list of those most affected. Nearly half of its exports cross the Atlantic, largely thanks to Pilatus, the aircraft manufacturer headquartered in Stans and the canton’s largest employer, with around 3,000 staff. The firm recently announced a temporary halt to deliveries to the US, underlining the impact of the new 39% import duty introduced by Washington on Swiss goods. Three of the top five cantons…

Cases of West Nile virus are climbing in Italy. Since the start of the year, 173 infections have been confirmed, 84 of them in the past week alone, according to national health authorities. The Lazio region, which includes Rome, has been the hardest hit, accounting for 104 cases this year. Eleven deaths have been reported in Italy so far this year: one in Piedmont, four in Lazio and six in Campania. The case fatality rate among patients with the neuroinvasive form of the virus stands at 15%—lower than in 2018 (20%) but slightly higher than in 2024 (14%). Switzerland, by…

Discontent over noisy vehicles is growing louder in Switzerland. Several cantons are calling for the nationwide deployment of noise-activated traffic radars. The devices, already tested in places such as Basel-Landschaft, Zurich and Geneva, are designed not to catch speeding drivers, but those making too much of a racket. In Geneva, the trials were deemed a success by the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN). The idea is simple: identify and deter motorists—often referred to as Autoposers—who deliberately rev their engines or modify their exhaust systems. The goal is to preserve peace for residents living near busy roads. But despite growing…

In Switzerland, more and more timber is being burned. According to the Federal Statistical Office, nearly half of all wood harvested from Swiss forests is now used for energy—twice the share recorded two decades ago. The proportion processed in sawmills for construction or carpentry has declined over the same period, falling from 70% in the early 2000s to just 46% today. The shift reflects a combination of policy and economics. Over the past 20 years, the wood-energy sector has steadily expanded. The push for renewable energy sources and favourable pricing have made wood for heating an attractive market—particularly for forest…

Switzerland has found itself on the sharp end of Washington’s latest tariff barrage. On August 7th, a 39% levy on Swiss imports is set to take effect—one of the steepest rates imposed by the United States in a sweeping round of trade measures ordered by President Donald Trump. The tariffs follow the expiry of a deadline for countries lacking a formal trade agreement with America. The White House’s newly published list assigns Switzerland the fifth-highest rate globally, after Brazil (50%), Syria (41%), and both Laos and Myanmar (40%). Within Europe, no country faces harsher treatment. The move caught Bern off…

Switzerland’s push for renewable energy has met with resistance. Late last week, a nature conservation group submitted two popular initiatives aimed at curbing the expansion of wind farms, reported RTS. Each has garnered over 110,000 signatures—above the 100,000 signature threshold required to trigger a nationwide vote. The first, dubbed the Forest Protection Initiative, seeks to restrict the installation of wind turbines in wooded areas. Its backers argue that erecting a single turbine typically requires clearing land equivalent in size to a football pitch. “Cutting down green space to protect the climate is an absurd contradiction,” declared the initiative committee, noting…

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) reported a first-half loss of CHF 15.3 billion, dragged down by foreign-currency positions that turned sharply negative in the second quarter. After posting a profit of CHF 6.7 billion in the first three months of the year, the central bank recorded a loss of CHF 22 billion between April and June—wiping out earlier gains and then some. The result was broadly in line with expectations. Some economists had forecast second-quarter losses of between CHF 17 billion and CHF 27 billion. Much of the damage came from a weakening US dollar. The SNB holds around CHF 300 billlion in dollar-denominated assets, whose…

Switzerland’s federal institutes of technology—ETH Zurich and EPFL in Lausanne—have announced plans to launch a large language model (LLM) of their own. Unlike most of its peers, this one will be public, open-source and led by ethics and science. It is expected to be released later in 2025. Developed under the Swiss AI Initiative, launched in December 2023, the project pools resources from over 10 Swiss institutions. The new Swiss National AI Institute is coordinating the project, which draws on more than 70 AI researchers from ETHZ and EPFL. Training of the system will be done on the new Alps…

Swiss retail endured a bruising first half of 2025. Sales between January and June fell by an estimated 1.9% compared with the same period last year, according to the Swiss Retail Federation, which analysed debit and credit card transactions. Physical stores bore the brunt, with revenues dropping 2.2%, while online sales eked out a modest 0.8% gain, reported SRF. The sharpest declines hit non-essential categories. Spending on leisure goods, hobbies, toys, clothing, footwear, and Switzerland’s famed watches and jewellery all tumbled. Only food sales held steady, as households curbed discretionary purchases. Cross-border shopping tourism is partly to blame. In the…

Proton, the Geneva-based encrypted email provider founded 11 years ago by three scientist who met at CERN, will freeze its investments in Switzerland, its chief executive Andy Yen told Le Temps on Wednesday. The company, best known for its privacy-first services, accuses Switzerland of edging towards becoming a surveillance state. The dispute centres on two draft ordinances updating rules on communications monitoring. The measures would compel encrypted messaging providers, including WhatsApp and Proton, to identify users and store their data, handing it over to authorities upon request. Such obligations clash with the core selling point of firms such as Proton…