The new head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, says the U.S.-China trade war could cost the global economy around $700 billion by 2020—a loss equivalent to the size of the Swiss economy. Eleanor Taylor Jolidon, co-head of Swiss and global equity at UBP, questions the need for growth at a high level, saying the world should start thinking about the quality of expansion.A stock exchange that measures social returns
As impact investing gains in popularity, the industry is coming under mounting pressure to develop standards for evaluating real change. Karen Wendt, CEO of Eccos Impact, says one “market solution to end the mess” would involve setting up a stock exchange for these assets.
Expect more green regulations in wake of elections, says UBS economist
With Switzerland’s two green parties making historic gains in national elections yesterday, UBS Switzerland’s chief economist Daniel Kalt says he expects more regulations to come concerning sustainability. But he warns against bans or excessive government intervention, calling for incentives such as a tax on carbon emitting fossil fuels instead.
A “free for all” direction in trade not the way to go, says Evenett
Ahead of the IMF meeting in Washington D.C. and the Brexit vote in the UK, Simon Evenett of the University of St. Gallen talks about the future of multilateral agreements and globalization in general. In his view, the large economies are moving in a “free for all” direction where countries won’t respect the rules and will grab as much market share of the world market as they can. “I think it is the wrong way to go,” says Evenett.
Climate is a key issue in Swiss national elections
Climate concerns are key among voters ahead of this Sunday’s national elections. Turnout is also expected to pass 50 percent for the first time in 40 years.
Apple on track to outsell the entire Swiss watch industry
The shift from analog to digital is leaving Swiss watchmakers behind amid growing demand for watches that do much more than tell time. Apple has grabbed about 50 percent of the smartwatch market in just five years and will probably sell more watches this year than the entire Swiss industry, says Alexander Linz, head of content at WatchAdvisor.com.
Negative interest rates benefit robo-advisers, says Decartes Finance
In recent months, there has been a backlash against robo-advising. But Adriano Lucatelli, co-founder and CEO of Descartes Finance, sees the current negative-interest-rate environment as being advantageous to robo-advisers since saving costs is crucial for consumers.
Smile aims to become the Netflix of insurance industry
Smile, the direct insurance arm of Helvetia, says it benchmarks itself against tech companies like Netflix, as it looks to shake-up the industry with its monthly subscription model and mobile-first approach. CEO Pierangelo Campopiano is targeting premium volumes of CHF 100 million in the next year.
SNB was right to refrain, says Safra’s chief economist
The Swiss franc is still trading at roughly the same level against the euro as a month ago, when the Swiss National Bank refrained from cutting rates. “That’s a surprise,” says Karsten Junius, chief economist of Bank J. Safra Sarasin, adding that it shows the Swiss economy didn’t need another round of easing.
