Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Could the 39% tariff levied by the US on Swiss exports soon be lowered? News from Bloomberg is giving hope to Swiss industry.
Today we also look at why a proposed direct night train link between Basel and Malmö in Sweden may actually never see the light of day. And finally: how much do you know about the rules of the road? Should someone riding a bicycle through a roundabout stay in the middle of the road or stick to the right?
Enjoy the read!
Switzerland is holding its breath after Bloomberg’s revelations today that the Swiss government might sign an agreement with the US in the next two weeks to lower the tariffs imposed on Swiss exports to the US from 39% to 15%.
At a press conference, US President Donald Trump partly confirmed what had been written by business papers. “We’re working on a deal to get their tariffs a little bit lower,” he said. “We hit Switzerland very hard. [But] we want Switzerland to remain successful,” Trump added, stressing that the Swiss federal government has been “a good ally” so far.
However, Trump remained vague on the content of a possible agreement and did not mention percentages. According to Bloomberg, the change of course may be due to the president’s meeting last week with a handful of top Swiss businesspeople. They allegedly proposed investments in the pharmaceutical sector and the relocation of gold smelters to the US.
Swiss politics could put the brakes on a night train service that from April 15, 2026, would directly connect Basel and Malmö, Sweden, as planned by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
A group of representatives of centre-right parties opposes the federal government’s financial support for the route. They include the president of the Centre Party, Matthias Bregy, who told Sonntagszeitung that the project was “too expensive at a time when resources in the regional passenger transport sector are being reduced”.
Night trains are popular, but are not profitable due to the high costs, Federal Railways declared when the route was first presented. The financial support of the federal government is crucial for the introduction and operation of the line.
Switzerland’s contribution, which will be decided by parliament in the upcoming winter session, amounts to CHF47 million ($59 mllion) until 2030. It is also part of the Swiss CO2 Act, which, among other things, envisages giving the population more opportunities to travel by train.
“Around CHF9 million a year is nothing for the state,” David Raedler, co-president of the Association for Traffic and Environment, told Swiss public radio, RTS. “If the argument of opponents is financial, then there are other questions to be asked, for example the total absence of taxation on aviation fuels.”
Swiss Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider today launched the first national prevention campaign against domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, which will run for several years.
Conceived in three stages, the campaign will first address victims, their entourage and finally people who are violent or potentially violent. The people concerned will find information, advice and support tailored to their situation on the campaign website, says the interior ministry
The federal government was recently criticised by the Istanbul Convention Network for not doing enough to combat gender-based violence.
Confirming the urgency of this issue, the Federal Statistical Office today published the results of a survey on homicides and attempted homicides in Switzerland. It reveals that between 2019 and 2023, 93% of victims of crimes committed in the context of a relationship are female.
A study by the University of Lausanne highlights cyclists’ reluctance to follow the recommendations and possibilities offered by the rules of the road.
The most striking example in the report is roundabouts. Should the cyclist remain in the middle or on the right? The answer is the middle, to be more visible, but most cyclists ignore this, believing they are committing an offence.
The study points out that this creates tensions and harms coexistence on the roads.
The same problem occurs regarding cyclists’ possibility of turning right at certain red lights. Around 90% of cyclists make use of this option, but almost a quarter consider it dangerous. The study proposes improvements to ease tensions between bicycles and cars, such as an information campaign or the reconfiguration of certain road intersections.
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