Young savers, waning agricultural power, and the return of measles

In America, no other generation has started saving as early as Gen Z. Keystone/Swissinfo

Welcome to our press review of events in the United States. Every Wednesday we look at how the Swiss media have reported and reacted to three major stories in the US – in politics, finance and science.

When did you start putting money aside for your retirement (if indeed you do)? Depending on which generation you belong to – boomer, Gen X, Y or Z – the younger you are, the earlier you probably started saving up. This week Swiss public broadcaster SRF investigates why a “veritable movement” of savers aged 14-29 has emerged in the US.

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Ploughing a field in Texas. 2022 Houston Chronicle

The United States is losing its status as the world’s leading agricultural power, partly due to tariffs, Le Temps writes.

“This is a date that could go down in history,” the Geneva newspaper declared on Wednesday. “The United States, the world’s leading exporter of agricultural produce since the aftermath of the Second World War, is in the process of ceding its top spot to Brazil.”

In fact, it’s almost a done deal, Le Temps concluded. Last year, the US exported agricultural products worth $171 billion (CHF140 billion), while Brazil exported $169 billion, according to customs figures from both nations. “Never has the gap been so narrow,” the paper said, adding that economists estimate that, in reality, Brazil has already overtaken the US, which includes a wider range of commodities in its agricultural exports category.

“Brazil’s rise has been driven by two factors: trade wars and then tariffs,” commodities expert Jean-François Lambert told Le Temps. He cites the example of soya: China had long been importing the protein-rich oilseed on a massive scale, particularly from the United States. However, the trade wars – which intensified during US President Donald Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2021 – followed by tariffs during his second term prompted Beijing to look elsewhere.

In 2023, 100 million tonnes of soya were exported from Brazil and 50 million from the United States, whereas ten years earlier these countries were at the same level (nearly 60 million each), according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

“Donald Trump has made life terribly difficult for US farmers, who nevertheless voted for him in large numbers, and Brazil is reaping the benefits,” says Lambert, who sees this as an example of how agriculture may depend more on geopolitics than on agronomic issues or climate change.

• The US is losing its status as the world’s leading agricultural powerExternal link – Le Temps (French, paywall)

• How Trump’s policies made life hard for America’s loyal farmersExternal link – Neue Zürcher Zeitung (German, paywall)

• Caught between faith and survival, Arkansas farmers remain loyal to TrumpExternal link – RTS, September 2025 (French)

On average, Gen Z starts saving at the age of 19. Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Setting money aside is the latest craze among young Americans, according to Swiss public broadcaster SRF, noting that a “veritable movement” of savers aged 14-29 has emerged in the US. SRF looks at what’s behind this trend.

No other generation has started saving as early as Gen Z, SRF’s stock market correspondent explained on Sunday.

Citing a report by news agency Bloomberg, SRF says that on average, Gen Z starts saving at the age of 19. “There are many reasons for this: high interest rates, high house prices and a difficult job market. For those just starting out in their careers in particular, it’s not so easy to get a foothold due to competition from AI. So, to be able to look to the future with greater confidence, there’s now this trend towards saving.”

As for how young people invest their savings, SRF says there are two trends, each with varying levels of risk. “On the one hand, people are investing their money in traditional bond funds, which also offer tax advantages. Others place bets on prediction markets, or young people invest in cryptocurrencies – in other words, they’re gambling and hoping for high returns.”

How does Gen Z differ from other generations? SRF points to the Gen Z “Financial Independence, Retire Early” (FIRE) movement, whose aim is to squirrel away as much money as possible as quickly as possible so that they won’t have to work for much longer. “This movement pursues very different goals to those attributed to the preceding generation, Gen Y,” SRF said, referring to the group also known as millennials, born between 1981 and 1996. “The latter stood – or still stands – for work-life balance. According to surveys, Gen Y only started putting money aside at the age of 32. As for the even older generation, the baby boomers [born 1946-1964], they only began saving from the age of 35.”

SRF concluded that “given the current high level of uncertainty, there are good reasons – from the perspective of Gen Z – to put as much money aside as possible, as quickly as possible”.

• Saving money is the latest craze among young AmericansExternal link – SRF (German)

• Is AI turning Gen Z into the new lost generation?External link – Neue Zürcher Zeitung (German, paywall)

Getting a vaccination against diseases including polio and measles. Keystone

The United States is experiencing its worst measles outbreak since 1991, Le Temps reported on Friday. The highly contagious disease – considered eradicated in 2000 – has been making a strong comeback for over a year against a backdrop of growing vaccine scepticism.

In just seven months, 2,318 confirmed cases were recorded, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – more than in 2025, a year which had already broken records with 2,289 cases and three deaths, including two young children.

It is “a preventable crisis that disproportionately affects children”, Andrew Racine, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), said in a statement. “We should not accept this as our new normal.”

Measles causes fever, respiratory symptoms and skin rashes, and in some cases more serious complications, such as pneumonia and inflammation of the brain, which can lead to severe long-term effects or even death, Le Temps explained.

“In 2000, this highly contagious disease was considered to have been eradicated from the United States, thanks to vaccination,” the Geneva newspaper wrote. “However, it’s made a strong comeback in recent years, against a backdrop of falling vaccination rates and growing mistrust of health authorities. Trump’s Health Secretary, the vaccine sceptic Robert Kennedy Jr, is accused of playing a major part in this crisis by fuelling fears about the vaccine.”

The US had not seen such high numbers of measles cases since 1991, when 9,643 cases were recorded, Le Temps said. Before a vaccine was developed in the early 1960s, measles killed hundreds of children every year in the United States and continues to claim tens of thousands of lives worldwide.

• United States experiences its worst measles outbreak since 1991External link – Le Temps (French, paywall)

• Global concern over measles is rising. Should Switzerland worry? – Swissinfo, May 2025

The next edition of ‘Swiss views of US news’ will be published on Wednesday, August 5. See you then!

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