November
KOF Economic Barometer: Outlook remains at a low level
In November, the KOF Economic Barometer decreased again slightly and stands now at 89.5 points. This is the fifth time in a row that the barometer has fallen. The outlook for the Swiss economy therefore remains subdued in the coming months.
Swiss economy increases investment in digital technology
The Swiss economy is investing more and more money in hardware and software. In particular, the use of digital technologies such as robots, big data applications and artificial intelligence is being expanded in many sectors. This is a key finding of the KOF Innovation Survey commissioned by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).
Increase in healthcare expenditure as a share of GDP is flatlining
Healthcare spending will rise by 2.9 per cent this year. The growth rate will increase slightly to 3.6 per cent in 2023 and decrease again slightly to 3.1 per cent in 2024. Compared with economic output, healthcare expenditure will rise less sharply than in previous years. These are the key findings of KOF’s health expenditure forecast, which was prepared with the help of a research contribution from comparis.ch.
Global Barometers continue to signal a slowdown of the world economy for the coming months
The Global Barometers fall once again in November after a slight improvement in the previous month. With the results, the Coincident Barometer reaches its lowest level since August 2020 and the Leading Barometer is the second lowest since June 2020, beating only the level of last August.
KOF Business Tendency Surveys: business activity slowing while manufacturing sector starts to weaken
The KOF Business Situation Indicator for the Swiss private sector, which is calculated from the KOF Business Tendency Surveys, fell significantly in October. Although business remains predominantly encouraging, the last time the Business Situation Indicator was lower than it is at present was in June 2021. The signs of a slowdown in business activity in the manufacturing sector are unmistakable. This is shown by the results of the latest Business Tendency Surveys for October.
KOF Employment Indicator has peaked for the time being
For the first time in over two years the KOF Employment Indicator is falling. Starting from a high level, the employment outlook for the next three months in particular is deteriorating. The manufacturing sector is being especially squeezed.