- Man City have rest 'advantage' in Arsenal showdown: Guardiola
- Maresca has 'no doubt' in Jackson as Chelsea's number nine
- EU chief announces 35 bn euro loan plan for Ukraine before winter
- From TikTok to Hollywood, the irresistible rise of Italy's Khaby Lame
- Verstappen punished for swearing in Singapore press conference
- Sri Lanka lead by 202 in first New Zealand Test
- Brook 'not too fussed' by England's batting in heavy Australia loss
- India's Ashwin 'happy' to embrace pressure
- A modern 'Trojan Horse': two days of mayhem in Lebanon
- Third of Burundi mpox cases in children under five: UN
- Man Utd appoint Foster + Partners to develop Old Trafford 'masterplan'
- Israel-Hezbollah exchanges intensify on Lebanon border
- French mayor sorry for 'no one died' remark over mass rape trial
- Mohamed Al-Fayed, outsider shunned by British high society
- Lawyers say 'monster' late Harrods owner abused dozens of women
- India in box seat after Bumrah takes four against Bangladesh
- Taiwan retains death penalty but limits use to 'exceptional' cases
- Ferrari's Leclerc sets early pace in Singapore ahead of Norris
- 10 years into Huthi rule, some Yemenis count the cost
- France poised to finally get new govt
- Kompany, Alonso call for action on player workload amid strike talks
- Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson doubtful for Bournemouth clash
- Bumrah takes four as India bowl out Bangladesh for 149
- Sri Lanka 134-1 to take upper hand in first New Zealand Test
- Bayern's Kompany calls for game cap for players amid strike talks
- Christie's expands Hong Kong footprint in hope of art market 'pickup'
- Sultry screen legend Sophia Loren turns 90
- Cambodian opposition figure in court on incitement charge
- Bumrah takes three wickets to have Bangladesh in trouble at 112-8
- Kimchi threat as heatwave drives up South Korea cabbage prices
- UK economic data delivers fresh blow to new govt
- China to 'gradually resume' seafood imports from Japan after Fukushima ban
- India minister blames dam release for flooding
- O'Rourke strikes early for Kiwis as Sri Lanka trail by three
- Deep takes two as Bangladesh totter in reply to India's 376
- Israel pounds Lebanon's Hezbollah after device blasts
- Revolution or mirage? Controversy surrounds new Alzheimer's drugs
- Ashwin's 113 powers India to 376 in Bangladesh Test
- Biden opens home to 'Quad' leaders for farewell summit
- Sally Rooney returns with 30-something questions
- Wallabies sense 'massive' chance to upset All Blacks
- Taiwan questions two in probe into Hezbollah pagers
- Viral Korean Olympic shooter scores first acting role as assassin
- Farrell set for 'challenge' of downing Bordeaux in Top 14
- Springbok Etzebeth diverts attention from looming caps record
- Inter on a high ahead of Milan derby as Napoli face Juve test
- Bank of Japan leaves key interest rate unchanged
- Arnold quits after six years in charge of Australia
- Asian markets track Wall Street record to extend global rally
- Guirassy and Anton to return to Stuttgart with new side Dortmund
RBGPF | 5.79% | 60.5 | $ | |
CMSC | 0.26% | 25.12 | $ | |
JRI | -0.53% | 13.33 | $ | |
BCC | -1.57% | 142.45 | $ | |
RIO | -1.15% | 64.44 | $ | |
NGG | 0.91% | 69.46 | $ | |
GSK | -1.07% | 41.18 | $ | |
SCS | -1.91% | 13.06 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.12% | 25.01 | $ | |
AZN | -0.68% | 78.37 | $ | |
RELX | -0.02% | 48.12 | $ | |
RYCEF | -0.29% | 6.93 | $ | |
BCE | 0.03% | 35.2 | $ | |
BP | -0.58% | 32.57 | $ | |
VOD | -0.15% | 10.045 | $ | |
BTI | -0.51% | 37.38 | $ |
Neutral Switzerland's economy shaken by sanctions on Russia
Switzerland's newly adopted tough stance on Russia has forced the Swiss economy to readjust to sanctions, blowing a wind of panic through the raw materials market in particular.
Switzerland announced Monday it would follow the sanctions being imposed by the European Union, abandoning Bern's traditional reserve by ordering the immediate freezing of assets belonging to Russian companies and individuals appearing on the EU blacklist.
And it went further on Friday, adopting even stricter EU sanctions applied in response to Moscow's February 24 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Exporting goods that could enhance Russia's military capabilities is prohibited, as is the exportation of certain goods and services in the oil sector, and aviation technology.
"The implementation of these sanctions is compatible with Switzerland's neutrality," the government insisted in a statement.
The wealthy Alpine nation's businesses are complying with the sanctions but have also stressed that Russian money accounts for only a fraction of their turnover, in an attempt to reassure investors.
The airline Swiss, a subsidiary of Germany's Lufthansa, has suspended its flights to Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
Global container shipping company MSC and freight logistics firm Kuehne + Nagel have stopped taking Russian orders for cargo, except for food, medical and humanitarian goods.
Business lobby Economiesuisse said the sanctions would have "limited" direct consequences on foreign trade.
Russia is only Switzerland's 23rd-biggest trading partner. The Swiss mainly export medicines, medical products, watches and machinery to Russia, while the chief imports are gold, precious metals and aluminium.
In 2021, exports to Russia amounted to 3.2 billion Swiss francs ($3.5 billion, 3.2 billion euros), with imports as low as 270 million francs, according to the customs authorities.
However, the landlocked state is an important player in raw materials trading, through companies such as Glencore, Trafigura, Vitol and Gunvor.
Gennady Gatilov, Russia's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, said Friday he was surprised by the sanctions, because Switzerland had always "tried to maintain a certain neutrality".
"We are disappointed with this, because we have very good relations with Switzerland... and the joining of Switzerland to these unlawful sanctions... will have (a) certain negative impact," he told reporters.
- Crisis mode -
According to figures circulating in the Swiss press, 80 percent of Russian oil is traded in Switzerland, though Florence Schurch, secretary general of the Swiss Trading and Shipping Association, could not confirm the figure.
The exact amount is "being assessed", she told AFP, nonetheless confirming that the sector weighs heavily in the economy.
In employment terms, energy, grains, metals and minerals trading represents some 10,000 direct and 35,000 indirect jobs.
"Since Monday, everyone has been in a bit of a crisis cell mode," Schurch explained. Some companies are already trying to "locate their cargoes" on the move, or "repatriate sailors stranded in the Black Sea".
"A lot of companies have censored themselves," she said, not least because payments are becoming "complicated" now that Russian banks are cut off from the SWIFT system and Swiss banks are reviewing their trade financing.
The Swiss-based Nord Stream 2 company has gone under after Germany halted the gas pipeline following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
The bankruptcy has caused panic in the sector. Trading giant Glencore has announced it is reviewing its business in Russia while Trafigura is revisiting its stake in Vostok Oil -- Rosneft's major oil project in Siberia.
- Banks, watches and tourism -
Swiss banks are a popular place for wealthy Russians to stash their money. According to the Bank for International Settlements, Swiss banks' liabilities to Russian customers amounted to $23 billion in the third quarter of 2021.
The Swiss Bankers Association reacted to the sanctions by saying that Russia was "not a priority" market, and excluded the Swiss subsidiaries of Gazprombank and Sberbank from its ranks.
On the stock market, the Richemont group and the Swiss watch giant Swatch were also shaken by investor fears for the luxury sector.
Russia represents only about "one percent of our exports", said Jean-Daniel Pasche, head of the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry.
But the fall of the ruble could affect watch sales and the conflict also threatens to delay the return of Russian customers who "have not come to Switzerland since the start of the pandemic", he added.
In 2019, before the Covid-19 crisis, Russian tourists accounted for only 1.7 percent of hotel nights in Switzerland.
"However, it is a wealthy clientele" favouring five-star hotels, said Switzerland Tourism spokeswoman Veronique Kanel.
Some large hotels with a loyal Russian client base could therefore be "more specifically impacted".
L.Janezki--BTB