Rising health insurance premiums, which partly fund Switzerland’s healthcare system, are a key concern among Swiss voters. An initiative that aims to subsidise the premiums of those on low incomes will be put to voters on 6 June 2024. Had the vote taken place in April 2024, 56% of voters would have supported it. However, […]
Swiss universities triple fees for foreign students
Switzerland’s federal government is spending more than it collects. To improve its finances it is looking for additional revenue and costs that it can cut. This week, the government decided to charge foreign students at its two federal universities, EPFL in Lausanne and ETHZ in Zurich, three times what they currently pay, reported SRF. Switzerland […]
Swiss want to work less
More and more people in Switzerland want to work less, according to a study published by Swissstaffing, a placement agency umbrella organisation, reported SRF. A shortage of skilled workers is a perennial challenge in Switzerland. One potential solution is for part-time staff to work longer hours and extend retirement. However, reality is different. Swiss workers […]
Health insurance expected to rise in 2025
This week, the price comparison website Comparis published an article containing estimates of health insurance premium rises next year. It expects premiums to rise by an average of 6% in 2025. Despite average premiums rising 8.7% in 2024, some insurance companies will have thin reserves by the the end of the year, forcing them to […]
Swiss unemployment falls in April
According to data from the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), 106,957 people were registered as unemployed at the end of April 2024, 1,636 (-1.5%) fewer than the previous month, taking the rate from 2.4% to 2.3%. However, unemployment remained higher (+0.3 percentage points) than it was at the same time in 2023. At the […]
Commission wants to postpone pension hike funding question
After the successful vote to raise Swiss state pensions by one twelfth (a 13th month payment), the question of how to fund the extra CHF 4.2 billion a year required has been preoccupying many in Bern. This week, a parliamentary commission voted 13 versus 12 to postpone the question and to tackle it later during […]
Swiss house prices fall in the first quarter of 2024
After increasing for three quarters in a row, residential property prices in Switzerland fell during the first quarter of 2024, according to data from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO). The Swiss residential property price index (IMPI) fell by 1.0% in the period from January to March 2024. At the same time prices remained 1.5% higher than they […]
Inflation returns to Switzerland in April
Consumer prices in Switzerland increased by 0.316% in April 2024, rising 1.4% over the previous 12 months, reported Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO) this week. However, annualised, the monthly rate comes to 3.79%, a rate well above the Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) preferred maximum of 2%. April’s 0.3% monthly price increase was driven by several […]
Swiss National Bank profits bounce back to record level
This week, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) announced a record quarterly profit for the first quarter of 2024. The result was largely predicted after the SNB made a surprise interest rate cut, which led to a weaker Swiss Franc. Switzerland’s central bank is unusual. It is privately owned (mainly by a German citizen) but distributes […]
Swiss health care costs continued to rise in 2022
Data published this week by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) show a 2.5% rise in spending on healthcare in Switzerland in 2022. The increase is below the average rate of 3.2% over the five years before. During 2022, Switzerland spent CHF 91.5 billion on healthcare, which is more than CHF 10,000 per person. Between 2021 […]