The Swiss economy marked time at the end of last year, held back by a sluggish world economy and a tense geopolitical situation. Over the whole of 2022, Swiss growth has also slowed.
In the fourth quarter of 2022, the Confederation’s gross domestic product (GDP) remained at a standstill (0.0%) compared to the previous partial and following having modestly increased by 0.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to uncorrected data sporting events.
This development is lower than the forecasts of economists surveyed by the AWP agency, who expected quarterly growth of between +0.1% and +0.3% in the last partial 2022.
Over the past year as a whole, GDP grew by 2.1%, following accelerating by 4.2% in 2021, the State Secretariat (Seco) said in a press release on Tuesday. This announcement is in line with the growth forecasts of federal economists published last December.
“The difficult international context has slowed down the manufacturing industry and, therefore, exports. Domestic demand has remained strong,” detailed the Seco. According to the federal administration, “while the economic situation has been marked by the recovery following the coronavirus crisis, it has also borne the brunt of the tense situation in Europe in terms of energy supplies and the darkening of the international environment. “.
Exports have indeed slowed down significantly (-1.7%) between October and December last, following having accelerated vigorously in the previous quarter (+9.7%). Imports of goods (-1.5%) followed the same trajectory, following a solid performance in the 3rd quarter (+2.2%). Household consumption (+0.3%) marked time, while that of public administrations (+0.3%) was more or less stable.
In the tourism sector, the recovery continues following the coronavirus crisis. “More foreign tourists returned to Switzerland”, the added value in the hotel and catering sector having increased further (+1.5%), while remaining 5% lower compared to the end of 2019.
This article has been published automatically. Source: ats/awp
