Switzerland: Super strong growth in the first half - ING

Charlotte de Montpellier, Economist at ING, notes that the Swiss economy is doing really well as it grew at a fast pace in the first half, with GDP growth reaching 1% and 0.7% quarter-on-quarter in the first and the second quarters, respectively, thanks to a robust foreign demand.

Key Quotes

“The Swiss economy has recorded a QoQ growth rate of more than 0.7% for five straight quarters, something that has not happened since the beginning of 2015 when the exchange rate floor against the euro was abolished.”

“The main driver of growth in 2Q18 was manufacturing (+1.5% QoQ), which benefited from robust foreign demand and the depreciation of the Swiss franc. Note, however, that part of this growth (0.2 percentage points) is somewhat artificial due to license income generated by the marketing of major international sports associations based in Switzerland.”

“The World Cup and the Winter Olympic Games both took place in 2018, which had an impact on GDP data. With no sporting events planned for 2019, however, this effect will disappear.”