Updated 16:55 Zurich and Bern, Switzerland (Le Temps, Fre) – Le Temps Wednesday afternoon 18 February reports the potentially explosive news, not confirmed officially, that UBS, which has been under investigation by the IRS (Internal Revenue Service: tax authority) in the US, will turn over the names of 250 clients to the American Justice Department. Le Temps credits several sources, which it does not name. It notes that UBS, which has resisted pressure over providing names until now, “in the process, weakens the Swiss financial centre.”
Neuchatel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Preliminary figures from the Swiss Statistical Office show that retail sales remained strong throughout 2008, up 4.3% compared to 2007, and 2.9% when adjusted for the number of open days and inflation. December had an increase of 4.5% compared to 2007, which was -0.5% when adjusted for the number of open days and inflation.
Geneva, Switzerland (Le Temps, Fre) – DuPont is having a birthday party in Geneva today, 18 February, to celebrate its 50 years in Geneva. Le Temps runs a lengthy story on the company’s diversification from petroleum-based products to agriculture and sustainable development. It also looks at the growing role played by women at the company, which has been aggressive in its efforts to get better gender balance in its workforce.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Geneva-based Givaudin, the world’s leader in scents and flavours, had a 6.07% increase in sales in local currencies in 2008, to CHF4.09 million, representing a fall of 1.1% in Swiss francs. Net income was up 19.4% from CHF93 million in 2007 to CHF111m in 2008. The group says it is relatively optimistic for 2009 despite the overall market downturn.
In other Swiss business news, Basel-based chemical company Clariant has posted a 2008 loss of CHF37 million, hurt by a sharp drop in the textiles and leather business, notably in the auto industry.
Neuchatel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The price of goods in Switzerland, both imported and Swiss-produced, fell in January 2009 by 0.8% compared to December 2008, and at an annual rate prices fell for the first time since 2004, by 0.9%. The lower prices of petrol and metal products were key factors in the fall.
Gland, Vaud, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Swissquote, Switzerland’s leader in online stock market trading, saw its 2008 results hit hard by the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers but its revenues for the year were up slightly over 2007, to CHF111.7 million, thanks to strong growth in its client base,
Jim Pulcrano, IMD
The great divide between the corporate and NGO worlds (non-governmental organizations) closed a bit 3 February when Lausanne’s business school, IMD, pulled together executives from the two groups, whose paths don’t often cross. They met for a three-day summit on responsible leadership where they were told by John R Wells, IMD’s new president, “Now is the time to re-double our efforts and put responsible leadership to the front and centre.”
John Well’s speech on responsible leadership
IMD has moved it to the centre of its agenda for executive training, but not just in response to the current economic crisis, Jim Pulcrano, executive director at IMD says. The school is determined “to have a real and positive impact on society through rewarding relationships.”
Photo, IMD on flickr: Responsible leadership summit
The summit was a great success, Pulcrano last week told a group from the American International Club of Geneva. “The mix of people was pretty good – and there was a lot of mixing.”
After the Lausanne summit IMD will set up a series of summits in Asia, the Gulf and the Americas, a move designed to ensure that it listens to stakeholders in different parts of the world.
The summit series is linked to IMD’s continuing growth from a Euro-centric to an international business school, Pulcrano says, a change that gathered speed perhaps 10 years ago and that has been made easier, somewhat ironically, because the school is unfettered by having other campuses or a main sponsor. No one company dominates the student body, with 3% the maximum. “We’re independent. We get no subsidiaries from the government.” Despite its relatively small size, with 56 fulltime professors, IMD was named number one in the world by the Economist for its MBA rankings.
Business schools mean MBA programmes to many minds, Pulcrano notes, but at IMD the MBAs are only 5% of the student population. The rest is a mix of executive education programmes, 40% open enrollment, 40% programmes tailored for partner companies and 15% what IMD calls its corporate learning network. The companies it works with are located around the world.
The school is well placed, therefore, Pulcrano notes, to work with the world’s top executives to focus more on developing responsible leadership.
At the summit, Wells, who stepped into his job 1 April 2008, upon Peter Lorange’s retirement, expanded on the phrase. “Getting results the right way means treating people and institutions fairly, taking the long view. Remember that business is a multi-round game. Fairness builds trust and loyalty which is key to good business. It means being honest: don’t steal from your firm’s long term assets to create the impression of short term profits that are not there.
“It means taking a broader view of the impact of a firm’s choices on local communities, society and the environment. And it means looking for investment opportunities to help solve critical issues such as the poor-rich divide, bringing the power of enlightened self-interest to bear on some of the world’s toughest problems.”
Patsy Allen, president of ESCA, talks to AICG members about the cancer association's work
Ed. note: Jim Pulcrano addressed the American International Club of Geneva 6 February. At the lunch where he spoke AICG’s president, John Silver, announced that the club’s 2009 charity recipient is the English Speaking Cancer Association.
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Bobst, the world’s largest supplier to packaging companies, based in Lausanne, says 2008 turnover was down 6.4%, or CHF111 million, from its record year of 2007.
Swiss debt, GDP
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss federal government has posted a CHF3.6 billion deficit for 2008 despite a budget surplus of CHF7.3b before extraordinary expenses of CHF11b.
Cisco Rolle: showing guests the quality of large-screen networking
San Jose, California, USA (Bloomberg) – Cisco is selling $4 billion of debt, only the second sale of its bonds in 25 years, as part of measures to cut costs in the face of falling sales worldwide of networking equipment.
Basel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Ciba Tuesday 10 February reported a loss of CHF564 million for 2008, compared to profits of CHF268 in 2007. Sales were down 9% for the year, reflecting a sharp drop in sales in the last quarter of the year, mainly in coatings and plastics for the automotive industry, the chemical company noted.
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – UBS, Switzerland’s largest bank, has announced a fourth quarter loss of CHF8 billion, higher than most analysts’ forecasts, bringing the bank’s loss for 2008 to CHF19.7b, due primarily to losses on risk positions in investment banking.
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – UBS will get $35 billion in help from the Swiss National Bank (SNB) through the stabilization fund (SNB StabFund) established in October 2008 rather than the $60 b figure given at the time. The SNB refers to greater financial stability in its Tuesday 10 February press release, “Developments since then have shown that, from a financial stability perspective, certain financial instruments will not need to be transferred to the fund.” The total amount in the StabFund will be $39.1 b, with UBS responsible for the cost of transferring 10% of the assets into the fund.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – New cars in Switzerland have been required since 2002 to carry national CO2 emission labels called étiquetteEnergie but now car dealers can also request them for used cars.
Chocolate bar, Swiss Alps
Boosting the economy with chocolates
Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The news is pretty short and sweet: while the world economy spiraled downward last year one industry saw the kind of growth other industries would like to have a chunk of, sales of Swiss chocolate rose as solidly as, say, a bar of dark chocolate, to 184,969 tons worldwide.
Sales were up 2% and net turnover 9.3%.
New York, USA (GenevaLunch) – Five lists were filed in a US court handling the Bernard Madoff bankruptcy case in New York, reports Reuters, and among the many high-profile names were several companies, including UBS AG. Also on the “customers” list: UBS Luxembourg SA
Updated 15:05 Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Credit Suisse is reported by US financial news service Bloomberg to be ready to cut bonuses for employees by 55%, joining UBS, which is expected to announce 10 February that it will pay CHF2 billion in bonuses for 2008, an 80% cut from 2007. Credit Suisse releases its figures for 2008 the following day, 11 February. Neither bank will confirm the information now and it is not certain that there will be any details in the financial reports released next week. A spokesman at Credit Suisse confirmed to GenevaLunch only that “variable compensation will come down significantly.”
Chavannes, Vaud (24 Heures, Fre) – A mistake appears to have been behind the too-appealing price of 47 centimes a litre for petrol Monday night at Léman Motors in Chavannes.
The lucky ones who filled their tanks for nearly a third the usual price quickly phoned their friends, but within two hours the police had arrived and blocked access, reports 24 Heures, until the owner could arrive.
Updated 16:05 Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Capital International, the European arm of Capital Group, announced 3 February that it is laying off 90 of its IT staff and 15 related support staff in Geneva and another 80 in London. The move is part of a restructuring of the company’s worldwide operations, with all IT to be centred in the US.
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Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – At first glance Switzerland’s trade figures for 2008 are startling: a record positive trade balance of CHF20 million, with exports up 4.6% for the year and imports up 1.8%. Exports for the first time were more than CHF200 billion.
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Travel group Kuoni expects a slowdown and to fight it, the company is investing CHF106 million over three years, largely in stronger marketing and employee training, but it will also reduce its staff, mainly through natural attrition.
Peter Bamert, Migros/Denner
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Denner, which is now 70% owned by Migros, ended 2008 with turnover up by 8.3%, to CHF2.94. The company announced Friday that Denner’s will have a new CEO in January 2010, Peter Bamert, age 50, who has headed Ex Libris for the Migros Group.
Bamert, Migros press release and Denner results press release (both in French)
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Swiss insurer Helsana is writing off a loss of CHF215m for 2008.
Biel/Bienne, Jura, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Swatch Group sales finished the year up 4.3% in constant terms and 0.4% in Swiss francs, to CHF5.97 million, the company announced 29 January. The year ended with double-digit sales increases in China and some Middle East countries despite the economic downturn.
Novartis, Basel
Basel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Novartis brought cheering news to an otherwise gloomy set of international corporate figures this week, but the company’s shares nevertheless slipped in Wednesday morning trading. Net profits were up 25% in 2008, to CHF9.2 billion and the company proposed a dividend increase of 25%.
Crissier, Vaud, Switzerland (24 Heures, Fre) – Sales are up 3-5% and the company is about to add 120 new jpbs: McDonald’s in Switzerland is doing just fine despite the state of the global econonmy, it says. 24 Heures carries a long feature about the company’s success wiith its McCoffee pilot projects in Switzerland and the company’s history here.
Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The outcry at news Monday that bank UBS could pay up to CHF2 billion in bonuses to employees following a CHF25 billion government bailout was long and loud.
Updated 15:40 Peoria, Illinois, USA (GenevaLunch) – Caterpillar, whose European government affairs office, with financial and marketing services, is in Geneva, announced Monday that it will cut 20,000 jobs in the expectation that 2009 will be its worst year since world war two.
Geneva, Switzerland (20 Minutes, Fre) – Christian Ebner, the creator of a group of businesses operating under the name of “Victor Ebner” that included a language school using audiovisual methods, is being charged with fraud and abuse of confidence, among other crimes. The lawyer representing one of Ebner’s former clients says the fraud amounts to CHF8 million.
Update 14:45 Zurich, Switzerland (Le Temps, Fre, RSR, Fre and WRS) – UBS is in the public eye over performance bonus payments again, with Zurich’s Sonntags Zeitung (Ger) reporting Sunday that the bank has obtained government authorization to pay CHF2 billion in bonuses for 2008. The Swiss Consumer Protection Foundation reacted Monday by saying it wants to see a representative of small bank account holders on Finma, the new Swiss banking and insurance supervisory body. The government’s bailout plan for the bank did not ban bonuses, with the government noting that it wants to encourage banks to be competitive internationally, but the bailout does require UBS to get approval.
