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The world-famous El Ateneo Grand Splendid bookshop in Argentina’s capital owes its existence to an entrepreneurial family with Swiss roots. "We transformed this, ...ادامه مطلب

This content was published on October 20, 2017 12:04 PMOct 20, 2017 - 12:04 The high-pressure system over central Europe is coming to an end, and with it, the unusually warm autumn days and clear skies.Many Swiss spent the first, ...ادامه مطلب

Employees test the quality of Nescafé instant coffee at the Nestlé production site in Orbe(Keystone) Your fix of moing joe likely passed through Switzerland, since the country is the world’s trading hub for coffee. In fact, the Swiss export more coffee than chocolate or cheese.“Most coffee traders are present in Switzerland,” said Cyrille Ja, ...ادامه مطلب

The controversy over employees at an insurance company call centre adopting fake Swiss names instead of foreign ones has put the issue of suames and nationality in the spotlight.  A recent news report revealed that Swiss Life allows staff to adopt a common Swiss suame, rather than use their own , ...ادامه مطلب

Gruyère may be renowned for its cheese, but its double cream is also highly prized. It was presented in all its variations at the region's first festival dedicated to the dairy product.  Rain didn’t deter the many foreign and local tourists who gathered at the event in the town of Gruyères. Equipped with umbrellas, they patiently waited in long queues in front of each stand to sample the sweet and savoury versions of double cream. On offer: the equivalent of 300 metres (984 feet) worth of meringues, 40 litres of double cream, 1,000 strawberries and 1,000 raspberries. Double cream is a local flagship product, and contains at least 45% fat. It is in fact the fat from milk that artisan dairies remove before making their cheese. They say it is best tasted locally, as it is a very delicate product that needs to be eaten quickly and kept cold. Ten sweet and savoury dishes were prepared with the ingredient for the festival, ranging from mushroom casserole to cream tart, and were served a,the most calorific food,most calories burger,most calories meal,most calories cake,the most calorie burning exercise,the most calorie burning sport,the most calorie burning exercise at home,the most calorie dense nutrient is,the most calorie dense fruit,the most calorie vegetable ...ادامه مطلب

The free movement of people accord is in the line of fire as Europe battles with its migration crisis. But which European countries have more people leaving than arriving? We took a look at the data. It's over 14 years since the free movement of people accord between Switzerland and the European Union came into force. Thanks to this deal, Swiss and EU citizens can study, work and retire in any EU country and in the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) zone of Norway, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Iceland. The free movement of people is one the EU's four basic rights guaranteed by the accrord, along with that of goods, finance and services.  Now Switzerland and the UK are both grappling with referendum results requiring immigration curbs. As the last installment of this migration series showed, more people migrate from within Europe than from Africa, something spurred on by the free movement of people.  As the chart below shows, the migration surplus differs by region. U,which european countries are not part of the eu,which european countries speak the most english,which european countries speak french,which european countries require a visa,which european countries drive on the right,which european countries colonized africa,which european countries established colonies,which european countries drive on the left hand side,which european countries have free college,which european countries don't use the euro ...ادامه مطلب

Britain is Geneva’s fourth biggest economic partner, after France, Hong Kong and the United States (Keystone) As the shockwaves of the British leap in the dark and exit from the European Union continue to reverberate, businessmen and other observers reflect on the possible consequences for canton Geneva, which holds close ties with Britain.  “The canton of Geneva will be the Swiss canton most affected by the Brexit,” Cenni Najy, a researcher from the Swiss Forum on Foreign Policy (Foraus) think tank told reporters on Thursday.  “Geneva is in a position of interdependency with the United Kingdom.”  Switzerland and Britain maintain a close trading relationship. Britain is the fifth largest destination for Swiss exports and fourth for direct Swiss investments.  Geneva stands out as the Swiss canton that imports by far the most from Britain – CHF1.7 billion francs in 2015, or double the figure of ten years ago.  It is also the second biggest exporting canton to Britain behind Basel. In 2015 some 7,300 British citizens lived in the canton. Geneva’s cantonal president François Longchamp shared his conces about the economic consequences with local parliamentarians on Friday, but said it was “too early to judge the impact for the Geneva economy.”  Geneva’s economics minister Pierre Maudet told swissinfo.ch he was naturally worried by events, “especially when such an important business partner enters such a period of turbulence.” Britain is Geneva’s fourth biggest economic partner, after France, Hong Kong and the United States.  'May not be so bad' Anthony Conway-Fell, president of the Geneva section of the British Swiss Chamber of Commerce (BSCC), meanwhile tried to remain upbeat.  “I don’t really see a lot of changes on the horizon,” he told swissinfo.ch. “My initial reaction was one of disappointment as I hoped the UK would stay in the EU, but thinking it over it may not be so bad.”  The biggest impact on Geneva-based businesses will result from a surging Swiss fran, ...ادامه مطلب

Holding vigil after the shooting in Orlando (Keystone) Swiss politicians and media have expressed condemnation and shock over the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando in which a gunman opened fire, killing at least 50 people and wounding dozens. “Switzerland condemns in the strongest terms the terrorist acts that struck Orlando yesterday, and extends its sincere condolences to the families and relatives of the victims of this tragedy,” said Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter on Monday, speaking at the opening of the Human Rights Council’s June session in Geneva. “We must continue our fight and prevent terrorism in order to defend our citizens and our freedoms,” he added. Swiss Foreign Minister Didier Burkhalter (Keystone) Many Swiss newspapers drew parallels between Sunday’s attack on the gay club in Orlando – the worst mass shooting in mode US history – and that at Paris’s Bataclan concert hall in November, when 89 people were killed. Islamic State have claimed responsibility for both massacres. “These comparisons are necessary in order to understand the scope and consequences of the Orlando bloodbath. ‘Orlando’ will soon become a symbol for the ever-present threat posed by attackers and how in need of protection American citizens are,” wrote the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ). “In particular, looking ahead to the presidential elections in November, Sunday should represent a watershed, with a ‘before’ and ‘after’ in America. Commentators have been saying for ages that a serious attack would have a massive influence on the outcome of the election.” The NZZ noted that Republican candidate Donald Trump could benefit most from the attack. “After the attack in San Beardino in Califoia, Trump called for a blanket ban on all Muslims entering the United States. The current case shows how pointless that would be: the attacker was an American citizen.” The paper concluded that it might be tempting to believe that simple solutions exist to complex problems such, ...ادامه مطلب

Serving up food and a message that bilateral EU accords are important (swissinfo.ch) Hamburgers, street art and the free movement of people accord with the European Union make an unusual mix. But the Swiss Business Federation (economiesuisse) is certain it’s a winning recipe. Their food truck tour promoting the importance of the bilateral accords with the EU ended in Lausanne on Thursday. On the Place de L’Europe square in the centre of Lausanne, a crowd of hungry locals gathers in front of the Green Van Company food truck for a free burger offered by economiesuisse. As the meat sizzles on the grill, around the square members of the lobby group and local entrepreneurs try to engage with the public on what they see as the big upcoming battle: Europe and the bilateral accords. Two years after a controversial anti-immigration vote narrowly passed – on February 9, 2014, 50.3% of Swiss agreed to imposing quotas on EU citizens – the federation is taking to the streets ahead of a possible vote in 2017 on Switzerland’s bilateral relations with the 28-nation bloc, immigration and the free movement accord. Criticised for campaigning too late against the 2014 mass immigration vote, the lobby group organised the food truck tour - Geneva, Neuchâtel, Sion and Lausanne - to get a head start and test pro- or anti-EU sentiment, while offering positive messages. “The aim is not to simply remind people that one out of every two Swiss francs is eaed in Europe, but to make sure people understand that our bilateral relations with the EU are extremely important and to listen to the population to clarify any questions,” explained Patrick Odier, vice president of economiesuisse. Patrick Odier putting his case to Lausanne locals (swissinfo.ch) But the dozen officials, businessmen and politicians present in Lausanne admit it is not an easy exercise. “In Geneva, Neuchâtel and Sion people expressed fears about employment, both for themselves and for their children. They have the feeling, ...ادامه مطلب

(Keystone) As voters prepare to vote on reforms to Switzerland’s asylum law on June 5, the conservative right Swiss People’s Party has insisted that most applicants arriving in the country are not fleeing for their lives. In an interview with swissinfo.ch, Albert Rösti, a member of parliament and the newly minted president of the People’s Party, argued that proposals to accelerate asylum procedures and offer free legal advice would only encourage undeserving applicants to come to Switzerland. Instead, Rösti said, “we should be looking for solutions for rejecting or repatriating the so-called economic refugees, who constitute most of the asylum seekers in Switzerland”. swissinfo.ch wanted to know if it was true that most applicants for asylum are not fleeing persecution or harm, but rather are people searching for better economic conditions. While it is impossible to know the exact reasons why migrants leave their countries of origin, we can look at asylum decisions for a sense of what proportion of applicants Switzerland believes faces persecution or situations that prevent a safe retu. This does not mean that those who receive protection are not economic migrants or vice versa, but it is the only type of analysis we can do based on the available data. The state has no legal obligation to offer protection to those it believes have left for other reasons, such as to improve their economic prospects. Data from the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) show that in 2015, slightly more than half of all asylum applicants who received a decision at the first instance or at the Federal Administrative Court obtained some form of protection: 6,377 gained asylum status and a further 7,109 were granted temporary admission (usually in cases where a safe retu is not possible). This is equal to a protection rate of 53.1%, down from 58.3% in 2014. If we look further back to the past decade, 2014 and 2015 appear to be an anomaly, as the protection rate dipped below 50% for eve, ...ادامه مطلب

Switzerland has a longstanding reputation for making exquisite chocolate, but which countries buy the most from the Swiss? According to the latest foreign trade figures from the Swiss Customs Administration, Switzerland exports the most chocolate to Germany. By weight, that was a delicious 21,381,465kg in 2015 or 19% of all Swiss chocolate exports. In total, 115,432,431kg of Swiss chocolate were exported in 2015. Below you can see where to – in terms of weight (kg) and export sales (CHF). The Association of Swiss Chocolate Manufacturers analysed the latest numbers and said that at CHF845 million ($866 million), overall Swiss chocolate export sales were up by 2.5% on the year before. The UK was the second-biggest buyer of Swiss chocolate (12.1%), then France (9.4%) and Canada (7.7%).  Belgium, another country famous for producing its own chocolate, was one of the nations where the biggest growth in Swiss chocolate exports was seen, along with the Netherlands. Outside the EU, Australia, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Japan were also big growth markets. In emerging markets like China and Russia, there was a fall in sales compared with the year before. Swiss ingenuity How did Switzerland come to have such a stellar reputation for chocolate when it doesn’t even produce its own cocoa beans? Economist Ha-Joon Chang, who teaches at the University of Cambridge and recently wrote about the Swiss chocolate industry for the Financial Times, told swissinfo.ch that the Swiss had developed this “incredibly strong industry really out of nowhere”. “Latin American countries like Venezuela or Ecuador boast that they have the best cocoa beans in the world, but how come when people hear the word chocolate, they think of Switzerland?” he said. “First of all it’s a tribute to [Swiss] ingenuity and dedication to being perfect! But the interesting thing about Swiss chocolate is that people think that’s all Switzerland produces – OK, some luxury watches and maybe Swiss army knives , ...ادامه مطلب