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Article: Fading Alpine rose; Switzerland.(Glumness in the Alps)(Switzerland's economy)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- October 18, 2003
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Can Switzerland regain its shine?
IT IS not a happy country. Switzerland's economy is stagnating, unemployment is rising, its airline still ails, Martin Ebner, a feted financier, has stumbled, and many Swiss insurers and banks are struggling. Last year saw the first labour unrest in 50 years. This September 25,000 people marched in Bern against pension cuts. So it is not surprising that the Swiss People's Party (SVP), an anti-foreigner party whose best-known spokesman is Christoph Blocher, may win the most votes in elections on October 19th. The SVP wants to keep foreigners out of Switzerland and Switzerland out of the European single market.
What has ...