Switzerland

Switzerland exported the fewest quartz watches in 33 years as competition from fitness bands and smartwatches pummeled the low end of the market and forced the industry to refocus on more expensive mechanical timepieces.

Swiss watchmakers shipped 17 million quartz and electronic timepieces in 2017, the lowest number since 1984, according to statistics published Tuesday by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry. By value, that was worth 3.5 billion francs ($3.7 billion), down 3.8 percent from 2016.

Switzerland and the United States are the biggest promoters of financial secrecy according to an index published today by the Tax Justice Network (TJN). The index ranks countries based on their level of secrecy and the percentage of financial services provided to non-residents.

In January, the KOF Economic Barometer does not continue its upward tendency, which started in September 2017, but has declined. However, despite the decline, the indicator remains well above its long-term average. It still indicates a more dynamic economic development than in mid-2017. The recovery of the Swiss economy is thus likely to continue, albeit with slightly less momentum than indicated in the past few months.

Online auctioneer Paddle8 is trying a new tack: merging with The Native, a Swiss technology and e-commerce company, and adopting the use of blockchain, the technology that underpins virtual currencies like Bitcoin, reports the New York Times.

Paddle8 announced on Tuesday that it had taken an investment from The Native, creating what the two say is a partnership meant to adapt online art sales – and potentially more – to an age of wealthy millennials well versed in virtual currencies.

Switzerland held its position as the No. 1 country in the world, according to the 2018 Best Countries report, a rankings and analysis project by U.S. News & World Report, Y&R’s BAV Group and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. In its third year, the rankings evaluate 80 countries across a range of criteria, from economic influence and power to citizenship and quality of life, to capture how nations are perceived on a global scale.

It is politically impossible for neutral Switzerland to sign in the foreseeable future a new treaty binding it closer to the European Union despite pressure from Brussels, Finance Minister Ueli Maurer said in a newspaper interview.

Maurer told the Neue Zürcher Zeitung newspaper on Friday that he didn’t think a new EU framework treaty was possible soon. “If we try it nonetheless, both sides will be under pressure and this will not lead to good negotiating results,” he said.

The authorities and private sector representatives from China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Tuesday signed three Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with Switzerland to strengthen financial cooperation, said the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).

Johann Schneider-Ammann, Switzerland’s economics minister, has said that the landlocked country should strive to "become the crypto-nation" if experiences in the Canton of Zug, colloquially known as Crypto Valley, remain positive. He made the comment in an interview with the news outlet SRF, as well as in a speech to the Crypto Finance Conference in St. Moritz, where he spoke after receiving a so-called "crypto award."