Banking & Fintech

New face to represent Switzerland abroad

This content was published on Jul 5, 2000 The government chose Reutlinger, 57, to head Presence Switzerland, the body charged with improving Switzerland’s image internationally. The foreign ministry said Reutlinger was an ideal candidate for the job, having plenty of international experience. He managed Swissair for many years, and was briefly president of Switzerland Tourism. He took over at Sabena in February 1996,…

Swiss cautiously eye up the Libyan business market

This content was published on Jul 5, 2000 Swiss companies, along with many western investors, believe Libya offers great potential. Rich in oil wealth, Libya is eager to modernise its oil production facilities which were closed off from foreign investment during the seven-year embargo. Telecommunications and transport are also in need of foreign investment and technology. With the end of sanctions, Libya began…

Railways announce more job cuts but no redundancies

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 At a news conference in Berne, the Federal Railways said no redundancies were expected in the move to reduce staff to 3,600. At present, 4,700 staff in 30 locations are responsible for the maintenance of some 20,000 locomotives and carriages. The Federal Railways hope the cuts will lead to savings of some 20 per cent…

Government launches campaign for energy levy

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 The government launched its campaign ahead of a nationwide vote in September, which will decide the future direction of Switzerland’s energy policy. Swiss voters will be called upon to approve a new tax on fossil fuels (oil, petrol, gas) and nuclear energy. They will also have to decide how the proceeds should be used. The…

SAirGroup chooses Swiss to head merger of French airlines

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 Reutlinger’s appointment comes after employees of the three airlines went on strike last week, fearing job losses and a dismantling of the three companies. Together the airlines made losses of nearly SFr200 million last year A communiqué from Sabena in Brussels said that Reutlinger, aged 57, is to take over on August 1 after he…

Rivella profit sinks by a third

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 At a news conference in Zurich, Rivella announced that sales in Switzerland went up by 11.7 per cent to 85 million litres, with an additional 16 million litres produced for foreign markets. However, the group said that it had not achieved its goal of establishing Rivella as a mass market product in Britain. “We have…

Small and medium-sized firms optimistic about Swiss economy

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 In a study, the economics information agency Dun and Bradstreet reports that the sectors benefiting most are the machine industry, electronic components, medical technologies and graphic arts. SMEs in the retail trade are also optimistic about their sales prospects, particularly in the vehicle, transport and construction branches. The study, which surveyed 1,500 companies with between…

Swiss banks under pressure to act as tax informers

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 The Swiss Bankers Association criticised the decision, saying the US was forcing the world’s banks to act as unpaid tax collectors. However, the Association said the new regulations do not amount to an attempt by Washington to circumvent Switzerland’s banking secrecy laws. The Basel-based association says it sees no breach of banking confidentiality because any…

Rivella profits sink by a third

This content was published on Jul 4, 2000 At a news conference in Zurich, Rivella announced that sales in Switzerland went up by 11.7 per cent to 85 million litres, with an additional 16 million litres produced for foreign markets. However, the group said that it had not achieved its goal in Britain to establish Rivella on the market as a mass product.…

Booming Swiss film industry begs for more cash

This content was published on Jul 3, 2000 More films than ever are being made with the help of the federal office for culture, and the office now estimates its budget needs increasing by SFr4 million for 2001. The head of the office, David Streiff, said two of the three meetings planned for the second half of the year by the panel which…

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