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Novartis blossoms from surprise beginnings

This content was published on Mar 6, 2006 Today Novartis, a Latin phrase meaning “new ways”, has outstripped Basel rival Roche and the juggernaut shows no signs of slowing. Novartis is one of the world’s undisputed pharmaceutical heavyweights, ranked fourth last year in terms of total pharmaceutical sales by market researchers IMS Health. Net profit soared ten percent in 2005 to a record…

Bern’s buses soon to be powered by sewage gas

This content was published on Mar 6, 2006 Construction work is underway on a pipeline to connect the Bern sewage works to the natural gas network, which will supply the city’s bus depot. Bernmobil, which runs tram and bus services in the capital, expects the first 32 Volvo gas-powered buses to be delivered in May. As the rest of the fleet becomes obsolete,…

Locarno’s mayor talks politics

This content was published on Mar 6, 2006 She explains how her enthusiasm and commitment to the job have stood her in good stead. Locarno, a town in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, is unusual in that its seven-member council has a majority of women. Men still largely dominate many local administrations in Switzerland. Earlier this year Speziali, who is also a lawyer,…

IMF calls for more structural reforms

This content was published on Mar 6, 2006 However, in its annual report on Switzerland, which was released on Monday, the IMF also had words of praise, assessing the prospects for the Swiss economy as “positive”. Economic growth in the coming year is expected to continue to benefit from the gradual recovery in the euro area and strengthened domestic demand, said a statement…

Social security to dominate spring session

This content was published on Mar 6, 2006 Health premiums and hospital funding schemes as well as development aid are among the wide range of issues under discussion. The House of Representatives will dedicate several days to debating the government’s plans to shore up the ailing state invalidity benefit scheme. The fund in 2005 posted a SFr1.7-billion ($1.3-billion) deficit and debts soared to…

Switzerland digs itself out after storm

This content was published on Mar 5, 2006 High winds followed by record snowfall closed roads, rail lines and airports, and cut off alpine villages. At least three people died. As much as 60 centimetres of fresh snow fell within a 24-hour period in many parts of northern Switzerland, breaking all previous records. The snow shut down public transport services in Basel and…

Winter’s return wreaks havoc in Switzerland

This content was published on Mar 5, 2006 High winds followed by record snowfall has closed roads and rail lines, led to flight cancellations and cut off alpine villages. At least two people have died. According to the Swiss weather service, MeteoSwiss, as much as 60 centimetres of fresh snow fell within a 24-hour period in some urban areas in eastern Switzerland, breaking…

Eastern Europe visit bears fruit

This content was published on Mar 4, 2006 Deiss wrapped up his eastern European swing in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, where he and his Lithuanian counterpart expressed an interest in increasing trade. Deiss said he had raised the issue of a possible free-trade accord with the European Union on agriculture, a subject he also broached earlier in the week with the Polish government.…

Businesses prepare to dig into their pockets

This content was published on Mar 3, 2006 A survey carried out by Zurich’s Institute for Business Cycle Research (KOF) late last year shows more firms are preparing to spend in the coming months than in 2005. “Investment activities are important for the economy because they account for a large part of the variations of the country’s gross domestic product,” said KOF’s Daniel…

Ageing workforce can play greater role

This content was published on Mar 3, 2006 Some 70 per cent of 804 firms surveyed have measures in place to retain older workers, with the proportion of the workforce over the age of 50 expected to rise from a quarter to a third by 2020. The findings were revealed at a conference in Zurich, co-hosted by economic think tank Avenir Suisse and…

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Novartis blossoms from surprise beginnings

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Bern’s buses soon to be powered by sewage gas

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Locarno’s mayor talks politics

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IMF calls for more structural reforms

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Social security to dominate spring session

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Switzerland digs itself out after storm

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Winter’s return wreaks havoc in Switzerland

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Eastern Europe visit bears fruit

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Businesses prepare to dig into their pockets

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Ageing workforce can play greater role

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