{"id":34075,"date":"2013-11-22T15:16:40","date_gmt":"2013-11-22T14:16:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/geneve-bale-zurich-trois-sommets-de-leconomie-suisse-20131122.html"},"modified":"2016-02-10T10:13:46","modified_gmt":"2016-02-10T09:13:46","slug":"geneva-bale-zurich-three-summits-of-the-swiss-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/en\/geneva-bale-zurich-three-summits-of-the-swiss-economy","title":{"rendered":"Geneva, Basel, Zurich: three peaks of the Swiss economy"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the narrow streets of the old town where Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born, you'd think time had stood still. Yet today, more than ever, Geneva is a city that keeps the world on the move. \"Before London, it is the number one place for oil trading\".<\/em>says Jacques Jeannerat, Director of the Geneva Chamber of Commerce. In fact, one out of every three barrels of oil is traded here, and Geneva is still the place where all the world's major fortunes are managed. Although Switzerland's second-largest financial centre after Zurich has inevitably suffered from the disappearance of the famous banking secrecy and the mythical numbered accounts, Swiss know-how and discretion remain as highly valued as ever. \"One in four Geneva bank customers is French\".<\/em>says Jacques Jeannerat.<\/p>\n

\"BaselThere are also many French people - nearly 80,000 - who cross the border every day to work. In the hotel industry, but also in the many multinationals such as Caterpillar or Procter & Gamble - whose European headquarters is also the city's biggest private-sector employer - or in the twenty or so international organisations and countless NGOs based in Geneva. \"Out of 270,000 jobs, 120,000 depend directly or indirectly on international organisations\".<\/em>says the Director of the Chamber of Commerce. Generating high and stable incomes, these jobs provide a good tax return which, through a snowball effect, contributes to a high quality of life, a gentle way of life that attracts people from all over the world.<\/p>\n

In the canton of Geneva, 45 % of the population are foreigners, and almost all nationalities are represented. It is for this reason that the city continues to look outwards in general, and towards France in particular. The CEVA project, a kind of RER line, will link Geneva's Cornavin and Eaux-Vives stations with Annemasse, Evian, Thonon and Annecy by 2018. \"Geneva is a city of daily migration that could almost be described as the capital of Haute-Savoie. That's why it needs this type of infrastructure to connect it to the surrounding French towns\".<\/em>continues Jacques Jeannerat.<\/p>\n

The Greater Geneva dynamic<\/h2>\n

\"Switzerland'sAs an enclave, the canton of Geneva has more than a hundred kilometres of border with France, compared with just fifteen or so with the rest of Switzerland. Hence the importance of the concept of \"Greater Geneva\", officially introduced in 2010. This cross-border conurbation project also includes the canton of Berne in addition to neighbouring towns in Haute-Savoie, and has served to boost the region as a whole, enabling it to welcome more foreign companies and attract more profitable skills.<\/p>\n

Of course, Geneva's leading economic sectors remain banking and finance, as well as the traditional watchmaking industry, which is still going strong, accounting for around 15 % of the canton's GDP. \"Romain Duriez, Director of the France-Switzerland Chamber of Commerce and Industry, explains: \"However, the real sector in the making is cleantech, because when the unemployment rate is low, as it is in Geneva, we can concentrate on particularly specialised projects.<\/em> Among Geneva's expertise in green technologies, insulation, high-tech timber construction and eco-construction are at the top of the list. For example, the architects of the new Go\u00fbter refuge in Chamonix, which is completely self-sufficient in energy, belong to Groupe H, which is based in both Geneva and Paris. This excellence is also evident in the development of numerous clusters: \"Cleantech Alps\" for green energy, \"Bioalps\" for biotechnology and \"AlpCity\" for communications and IT.<\/p>\n

Heading for German-speaking Switzerland<\/h2>\n

\"Inaugurated\"Geneva, because of its cultural proximity, is the traditional gateway for French companies setting up in Switzerland\".<\/em>explains Romain Duriez. However, it is German-speaking Switzerland that now accounts for two-thirds of the Swiss economy. And while France, the country's third-largest trading partner, has a market share of 25 % in French-speaking Switzerland - which accounts for barely two million of the country's eight million inhabitants - its weight is much smaller in German-speaking Switzerland, at just 7 %. \"So we're pushing French companies towards this part of the country as a good growth driver. It's no coincidence that major companies like PSA and Danone have just moved their Swiss headquarters from Geneva to Zurich.<\/em>says Romain Duriez. There is still the language barrier, a stumbling block for many French SMEs. \"And yet the French have the means to make their mark, particularly in the agri-food, energy and aeronautics sectors.<\/em>Romain Duriez concludes, pointing out that Airbus delivers a large number of private jets for which the interior fittings are made in Switzerland, in Basel in particular, before being shipped back to the Gulf States.<\/p>\n

As Switzerland's second-largest economic centre, Basel is focused on cutting-edge expertise. Its major asset: the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries. 40,000 people work in this sector, which accounts for more than a third of the city's GDP,\" explains Franz Saladin, Director of Handelskammer Basel. It's the biggest cluster in Europe in this field and, in terms of productivity, undoubtedly one of the biggest in the world.<\/em> For the record, in the 17th century, the Huguenots brought silk ribbons in their suitcases... which had to be dyed. Over time, the production of these colours developed, and then the step was taken from chemistry to pharmaceuticals, when the textile industry declined towards the middle of the 20th century. \"Today, Basel is home to two of the world's five biggest players: Roche and Novartis.<\/em>continues Franz Saladin. These giants of the pharmaceutical industry are building two mega campuses, designed by some of the world's leading architects, including Frank Gehry and Herzog and de Meuron from Basel. \"From 2017, the Novartis campus should have around 10,000 employees and researchers, while the Roche campus should be completed by 2014\".<\/em>concludes Franz Saladin.<\/p>\n

Basel, the crossroads of innovation<\/h2>\n

\"Basel'sThe University of Basel, Switzerland's oldest university, founded in 1460, plays a key role in this expertise, with the creation in the early 1970s of the Biozentrum, a pioneering research centre that fosters synergies between the various departments involved in the life sciences. \"Related areas continue to multiply, such as patent law and ethical issues\".<\/em>explains Reto Caluori, Director of Communications for the university. This centre will also improve communication between the hospital and the university. \"The Biozentrum will continue its transformation until 2029 - with a budget of one billion Swiss francs - to make it an even bigger cluster and improve its competitiveness.<\/em>continues Reto Caluori.<\/p>\n

\"Basel,Over the last fifteen years or so, Basel has become Switzerland's fastest growing city. Thanks to the leading pharmaceutical companies, of course, but also to the creative economy. Architects, graphic designers, creators and artists thrive here, and with good reason: for a population of less than 200,000, Basel boasts almost 40 museums, while every year since the 1970s the ultra-famous Art Basel contemporary art fair has transformed the city on the Rhine into a veritable social and artistic scene. The American version, Art Basel Miami, has been in full swing for ten years now, while the Hong Kong edition was launched in May 2013, with the success you'd expect.<\/p>\n

It has to be said that Basel, despite its provincial airs and modesty, is home to world-renowned galleries and an extraordinary creative force. Among the narrow streets of beautiful patrician houses are some astonishing contemporary buildings, such as the brand new exhibition and congress centre, Messe Basel, an immense metal braid forming a shaft of light designed by Herzog and De Meuron.<\/p>\n

Creative energy<\/h2>\n

Situated between Alsace and Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Basel also attracts cross-border workers, 60,000 in all, both French and German. Its geographical location therefore contributes to the city's creative atmosphere. A geographical crossroads between North and South, Basel is also at the heart of a route leading to the North Sea. \"The port of Basel developed in a modern way from the 1830s onwards, whereas since the Middle Ages the Rhine had only been navigable for two months of the year.<\/em>says Urs Vogelbacher, port spokesman. Today, Rotterdam and Antwerp are only three days' sailing away, which means we can handle hydrocarbons as well as a lot of bulk raw materials, particularly cereals. \"60 % of ships arriving from the North are filled with empty containers to ensure exports, which are very important for chemical, pharmaceutical and electronic products\".<\/em>explains Urs Vogelbacher, pointing out that the port of Basel accounts for seven to eight million tonnes of annual traffic and 10 to 15 % of Switzerland's foreign trade. But Basel is also a cruise port, which gives it a certain tourist advantage over its big sister Zurich, the heart of the Swiss economy.<\/p>\n

\"Zurich is far ahead of the country's other cities, which is why we set up our offices there in 2010.<\/em>explains Fabrice Lelouvier, Director of Ubifrance Switzerland. Among the city's main activities, services play a predominant role: insurance, finance, IT and retailing, with omnipresent players such as Migros. \"The network of SMEs is highly competitive and includes world leaders in various sectors of activity, enabling us to conquer distant markets.<\/em>says Fabrice Lelouvier. China, for example, with which Switzerland has just signed a free trade agreement.<\/p>\n

Zurich keeps busy<\/h2>\n

\"NikkiWith over 20 % of GDP coming from industry, Switzerland is still one of the most industrialised countries in the world. As for Greater Zurich, the country's most populous canton with around one million inhabitants, it has virtually no unemployment. The rate in the region, fluctuating between 2.6 and 2.7 %, is even lower than the national average of around 3 %. A privilege that attracts foreign talent in fields as diverse as banking, health and education.<\/p>\n

\"Even if growth in Zurich is currently a little slower than in recent years, you only have to look around to see that the city is continuing to develop and that a lot of construction work is underway\".<\/em>says the director of Ubifrance. A symbol of population densification, Prime Tower, inaugurated in the emerging Z\u00fcriWest district in 2011, is currently the tallest tower in the country. Fifteen years ago, this district was nothing more than an industrial wasteland, whose only sign of gentrification for a long time was the Freitag recycled bag shop. Today, it is a mixed-use area where trendy boutiques, chic bars, creative hotels, office space and research and development centres rub shoulders. A graphic arts school is due to move here soon, bringing with it 5,000 students, while the Technopark is already home to a number of incubators facilitating knowledge transfer between the worlds of research and business.<\/p>\n

\"TheThese industrial wastelands transformed into residential, working and leisure areas are becoming a real speciality of Zurich, which is expanding both geographically and economically. Current developments include the tunnel under the station, which will allow trains to reach Germany and the Lake Constance region without a diversion, and above all the major Europa Allee project in the former postal sorting area adjacent to the station, which should be completed by 2019.<\/p>\n

\"Greater Zurich is Switzerland's powerhouse, thanks to its large number of international companies, its diversity of sectors and its economic and social stability, as well as its ultra-modern infrastructure\".<\/em>says Sonja Wollkopf Walt, Managing Director of the Greater Zurich Area business development agency. It is in this region that more than 50 % of the national GDP is generated. \"And while cutting-edge technology, cleantech, life sciences, medical technology, advanced mechanical engineering and information technology are attracting more and more new Zurichers in search of well-paid jobs, quality of life remains a key asset. \"For more than ten years, Zurich has rivalled Vienna in the Mercer Quality of Living Survey.<\/em>We're in the top two places in the world,\" concludes Sonja Wollkopf Walt. Here, less than half of all households own a car. This no doubt explains the hint of cut grass and mountains in the air...<\/p>\n

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