SMEs see growth momentum easing
Small and medium-sized Swiss enterprises are growing more concerned about their business outlook according to a survey by Switzerland's largest bank, UBS.
The bank’s economists also say there are growing signs that the economy will have to be content with more modest growth in the coming quarters.
The latest survey shows that the business climate among the 700 SMEs that responded to a questionnaire remained positive in the second quarter.
But it adds that the solid growth momentum of recent quarters “is fading a bit”.
Most Swiss indicators point to a slowdown of the economy after four years of above-trend growth. The Swiss National Bank sees growth falling to between 1.5 and two per cent this year from 3.1 per cent in 2007.
Service companies are still more optimistic than manufacturers, and smaller firms held a more sceptical view of their business environment than larger companies, UBS said.
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