Archive – Banking & Fintech

Rock falls call tunnel safety into question

This content was published on Feb 11, 2003 The nationwide investigation follows two recent incidents when falling rocks blocked main roads, closing them to traffic for days. Although no one was injured, the fact that the protection tunnels and open-sided tunnels – known as galleries – failed to do their job has raised safety fears. Tunnels are an important feature of the mountainous…

Clariant posts 2002 loss

This content was published on Feb 11, 2003 In a statement on Tuesday, Clariant said it had run up losses of SFr648 million ($476 million) in 2002, following losses of SFr1.2 billion in 2001. The firm, based in Muttenz near Basel, said turnover for 2002 was also down 3.3 per cent at SFr9.33 billion. Clariant said the 2002 losses resulted from the company…

Swiss take stock of oil needs as war looms

This content was published on Feb 11, 2003 But the chairman of the Central Bank, Jean-Pierre Roth, warned on Tuesday that war could push up the value of the franc, leading to a risk of deflation. Speaking in Geneva, Roth said the Swiss “currency could come under pressure in the case of large geopolitical instability” caused by a war in Iraq. He added…

Start-up bridges Internet and home entertainment

This content was published on Feb 11, 2003 Its chips enable streaming media and MP3 files, normally limited to the PC and its tinny-sounding speakers, to play on newer, high-quality audio and video systems. The two-year-old start-up company demonstrated a handful of products that are based on its chips at the Consumer Electronics Show – a major industry event – in California last…

Roche moves to expand diabetes business

This content was published on Feb 10, 2003 It has tabled a SFr1.6 billion ($1.18 billion) offer for Switzerland’s Disetronic company, Europe’s largest maker of insulin injection pumps. The Basel-based group said the deal would make Roche Diagnostics a leader in integrated diabetes management. The news sent Disetronic’s share price soaring by just over 50 per cent. At the end of trading on…

Guests have designs on Engadine hotels

This content was published on Feb 10, 2003 “Why would someone want to take the skull and horns of a dead animal into his room?” That’s not the kind of question that usually pops into my head when checking into a hotel. But when director Jürg Mettler smiled and said “no television” while holding up the heady remains of a chamois, it was…

Executives face harsh reality of unemployment

This content was published on Feb 10, 2003 Figures released on Monday by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs showed there were 138,944 people out of work in January – an increase of more than 9,000 on December. With the jobless rate continuing to climb, Swiss employment agencies are facing a new dilemma: how to deal with scores of highly qualified professionals who…

Watch exports tick along nicely

This content was published on Feb 7, 2003 Swiss watch exports remained stable at SFr10 billion ($7.9 billion), down 0.1 per cent from the previous year. The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry said the exports of completed watches had risen for the first time in a decade, up 0.4 per cent in value and 1.7 per cent in terms of volume. The…

Swiss device targets deadly mines

This content was published on Feb 6, 2003 Digger-1 is designed to eliminate the danger posed by directional fragmentation mines, which are responsible for 80 per cent of mine clearance accidents in the Balkans. These deadly weapons, which are triggered by trip wires, use a shaped charge that fires hundreds of lethal metal fragments in a certain direction. The four-ton, remote-controlled Digger-1, which…

Former cement boss fined over insider dealing

This content was published on Feb 6, 2003 The former chairman of the Swiss cement company, Holcim, paid the fine on Thursday. Hours after settling the fine, Schmidheiny announced that he would not be returning as board chairman. Schmidheiny stepped down as chairman of Holcim – the world’s second largest cement group – last June, for the duration of the legal proceedings. The…

Archive – Banking & Fintech

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

Archive – Banking & Fintech

More

Rock falls call tunnel safety into question

More

Clariant posts 2002 loss

More

Swiss take stock of oil needs as war looms

More

Start-up bridges Internet and home entertainment

More

Roche moves to expand diabetes business

More

Guests have designs on Engadine hotels

More

Executives face harsh reality of unemployment

More

Watch exports tick along nicely

More

Swiss device targets deadly mines

More

Former cement boss fined over insider dealing

Popular Stories

Most Discussed