https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Large-denomination banknotes, like the 1,000-franc note, are rarely used for everyday transactions in Switzerland. So why are they becoming more popular? https://www.thelocal.ch/20210113/why-is-the-demand-for-1000-franc-banknotes-growing-in-switzerland Wed, 13 Jan 2021 16:21:48 +0100 why-is-the-demand-for-1000-franc-banknotes-growing-in-switzerland The Swiss National Bank unveiled the second note in its new banknote series on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170510/introducing-switzerlands-new-20-franc-note Wed, 10 May 2017 12:18:38 +0200 introducing-switzerlands-new-20-franc-note An 86-year-old woman has been arrested in Bern for spray painting an anti-war message on a billboard surrounding the Swiss National Bank, reported news agencies. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170411/woman-86-arrested-for-spraying-anti-war-graffiti-on-swiss-national-bank Tue, 11 Apr 2017 13:10:18 +0200 woman-86-arrested-for-spraying-anti-war-graffiti-on-swiss-national-bank Switzerland's new 50 franc note became available on Tuesday. Here's what that means for you. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160412/switzerland-unveils-new-50-franc-note Tue, 12 Apr 2016 12:43:00 +0200 switzerland-unveils-new-50-franc-note The Swiss National Bank said on Friday that it expects to post an annual loss of 23 billion francs ($23 billion) for 2015 due largely to foreign exchange transactions. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160108/swiss-central-bank-to-post-massive-loss-for-2015 Fri, 08 Jan 2016 10:30:54 +0100 swiss-central-bank-to-post-massive-loss-for-2015 Credit Suisse has lowered its outlook for Swiss economic growth next year to one percent from a previously anticipated 1.2 percent as the country juggles negative interest rates and a strong franc. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151215/credit-suisse-lowers-outlook-for-swiss-growth Tue, 15 Dec 2015 12:54:53 +0100 credit-suisse-lowers-outlook-for-swiss-growth Switzerland’s central bank on Thursday announced it was maintaining record low negative interest rates in a bid to prevent the “overvalued” franc from further appreciating. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151210/central-bank-maintains-record-low-interest-rates Thu, 10 Dec 2015 12:15:36 +0100 central-bank-maintains-record-low-interest-rates Despite the introduction of negative interest rates and willingness by Switzerland’s central bank to intervene in the foreign exchange market, the Swiss franc remains “significantly overvalued”, Andréa Maechler, new member of the bank’s governing board, said in Geneva on Thursday night. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151120/franc-remains-too-high-central-bank-board-member Fri, 20 Nov 2015 09:53:28 +0100 franc-remains-too-high-central-bank-board-member Telly Weijl, a Swiss fashion chain based in Basel, has decided to starting paying staff at its headquarters in euros instead of Swiss francs, according to media reports on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20151118/swiss-fashion-chain-to-pay-hq-staff-in-euros Wed, 18 Nov 2015 11:27:24 +0100 swiss-fashion-chain-to-pay-hq-staff-in-euros Switzerland’s central bank on Thursday left its monetary policy unchanged, keeping negative interest rates of 0.75 percent in place on large deposits. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150917/central-bank-keep-negative-rates-in-place Thu, 17 Sep 2015 12:34:47 +0200 central-bank-keep-negative-rates-in-place The mighty Swiss franc dipped on Monday to its lowest value against the euro since February as the European common currency rose above 1.083 francs in foreign exchange trading late in the day. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150811/franc-at-lowest-level-against-euro-since-february Tue, 11 Aug 2015 10:07:21 +0200 franc-at-lowest-level-against-euro-since-february The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is preparing for the possibility of a “crisis scenario” if Greece leaves the eurozone, the central bank’s chairman told German-language state broadcaster SRF on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150618/swiss-central-bank-prepares-for-grexit-crisis Thu, 18 Jun 2015 22:38:42 +0200 swiss-central-bank-prepares-for-grexit-crisis Massive losses in currency exchange holdings led to the Swiss National Bank losing 30 billion francs in the first quarter of 2015, the central bank reported in interim results on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150430/central-bank-records-massive-losses-for-q1 Thu, 30 Apr 2015 12:04:16 +0200 central-bank-records-massive-losses-for-q1 With the franc again nearing parity with the euro, the mood of Swiss small and medium companies (SMEs) in the export business has never been as bad, a new report says. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150416/exporters-fear-impact-of-rising-franc-on-business Thu, 16 Apr 2015 13:18:46 +0200 exporters-fear-impact-of-rising-franc-on-business Municipal workers in a small town in the canton of Saint Gallen have been ordered to work longer hours for no extra pay in “solidarity” with Swiss businesses coping with the strong franc. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150303/municipal-employees-ordered Tue, 03 Mar 2015 22:26:32 +0100 municipal-employees-ordered Responding to the surge in the value of the Swiss franc, certain companies in Switzerland are asking their employees to work longer hours without any extra pay. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150126/more-work-for-same-pay-firms-tackle-high-franc Mon, 26 Jan 2015 11:48:00 +0100 more-work-for-same-pay-firms-tackle-high-franc The euro dropped to its lowest level ever against the Swiss franc during currency trading on Friday, a day after the European Central Bank introduced a scheme to inject €1.1 trillion into the eurozone’s economy over 18 months. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150123/euro-hits-fresh-lows-against-swiss-franc Fri, 23 Jan 2015 13:04:00 +0100 euro-hits-fresh-lows-against-swiss-franc The Swiss franc edged higher against the euro on Thursday after European Central Bank president Mario Draghi announced the bank will buy €60 billion of European debt every month from March 2015 until September 2016. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150122/ecb-announces-major-bond-buying-program Thu, 22 Jan 2015 17:07:00 +0100 ecb-announces-major-bond-buying-program Switzerland would have had to spend more than $100 billion this month alone if it had continued efforts to hold down the value of its currency, a senior central bank official said on Thursday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150122/central-bank-official-defends-shock-fr Thu, 22 Jan 2015 12:00:00 +0100 central-bank-official-defends-shock-fr After the sharp rise in the value of the franc, Swiss travel companies have already begun to cut the price of their holiday packages. https://www.thelocal.ch/20150119/swiss-travel-agents-and-retailers-cut-prices Tue, 20 Jan 2015 00:05:00 +0100 swiss-travel-agents-and-retailers-cut-prices