Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Volatility was a key word Tuesday morning: European markets, including Switzerland’s stock market rose, but erratically, Tuesday morning after Asian markets recovered their Monday losses. The Swiss franc became a refuge currency, at a seven-year high against the euro.

Europe’s markets appeared to look for good deals after five days of losses on Asian markets came to an end, reports Reuters, which also notes that the dollar and yen eased, reversing currency trends. But the Swiss franc remained strong, playing its traditional refuge role, a situation which will hit Swiss exports and the tourism industry hard (see Le Temps chart of the dollar’s and Swiss franc’s movements since 2002). The SMI, Switzerland’s index of its top companies, rose 1.60% by noon Tuesday.

In corporate news, Porsche moved to tighten its control over VW, announcing plans to raise its stake to 75%,  and the latter’s stock shot up, making it the world’s most capitalized company, ahead of Exxon (story, Bloomberg, Financial Times)

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