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Orange creates 300 jobs

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 The Lausanne-based firm already employs 1,300 workers at its centres in Lausanne and Zurich. According to its own figures, it ranks third among companies offering new employment in Switzerland. Orange says it chose Biel – which straddles the French-German language divide – because of the large pool of qualified, bilingual staff available. Another big name…

Foreign trade deficit widens in July

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 The ministry said that while exports rose by 7.7 per cent to SFr10.32 billion, they were more than offset by imports, which jumped 9.6 per cent to SFr10.51 billion. The engineering, electronic and watch industries continued to be the main export earners in July. By contrast, the plastic and chemical industries recorded a below average…

Crossair lands in the red

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 The Basel-based short-haul carrier on Thursday unveiled a loss of SFr6.1 million ($3.5 million). The company blamed higher fuel prices and a strong dollar. Last year it reported first-half profits of SFr51.1 million before taxes and profit-sharing deductions. In a statement, Crossair said it was cautiously optimistic, but warned that salary rises for pilots were…

Books put St-Pierre-de-Clages on the map

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 This weekend, everyone from printers to second-hand dealers will be there for the village’s eighth book fair. The book festival is unashamedly modelled on its more famous British counterpart at Hay-on-Wye. But when a few book enthusiasts organised the first event in St-Pierre-de-Clages in 1993, even they were surprised by its success. More than 80…

Sulzer continues upward trend

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 Orders at the Winterthur-based technology group rose by five per cent to SFr2.9 billion during the same period. Sales were more or less unchanged at SFr2.5 billion. Sulzer chairman, Ueli Roost, said the figures showed the company was “well on course with the ‘Performance’ restructuring programme”. He added that when exceptional items from the previous…

Switzerland steps up moves to protect environment

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 Addressing the conference on Thursday, Roch said a multitude of projects to promote sustainable development on both local and federal levels were gathering pace. Participants at the two-day conference in Berne took stock and exchanged views on projects which are part of the “Agenda 21” adopted by 179 countries at the United Nations environmental summit…

Emmental to benefit from sustainable development project

This content was published on Aug 24, 2000 “Agenda 21”, adopted by 179 countries at the United Nations environmental summit eight years ago, aims to preserve and promote sustainable development. There are currently 48 projects across Switzerland. The project in Emmental region, which is known worldwide for its cheese, aims to keep the landscape intact and make the region more attractive for the…

Bribes no longer tax deductible

This content was published on Aug 23, 2000 The government announced on Wednesday that changes to federal laws on direct taxation would come into effect on January 1, 2001. The change will affect both private individuals and companies, which will no longer be to able list bribes among legitimate business expenses. The right has been recognised by law since 1946, but was a…

Switzerland bans uncut diamonds from Sierra Leone

This content was published on Aug 23, 2000 The decision, announced on Wednesday, follows a similar move by the United Nations in July, and is aimed at preventing rebels in the west African country from using gem sales to fund their war against the government. The ban will not apply to stones that have a certificate of origin and have been approved by…

Swiss scientists build cheaper supercomputer

This content was published on Aug 23, 2000 Supercomputers have traditionally been powerful machines that lurk in computing centres, and carry out tasks according to demand. Customers supply applications that only the number-crunching capacities and speed of a supercomputer can handle. The main drawback is cost – supercomputers are very expensive to run, and the cost of developing more powerful machines can be…

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