The Swiss economy is closely interlinked with the European economic area. As a consequence, cyclical influences and exchange rate movements between the Swiss franc and the euro have a major impact on the development in Switzerland.

Taking stock of the situation after a little over two years of co-existence with the euro, the overall picture is positive. There have been no distortions as a result of the floating exchange rate. On the contrary, it supported the monetary policy intentions by and large .

In the past months, worldwide economic risks have increased perceptibly. This is particularly true for the United States and Asia. The Swiss National Bank has reacted to this change with a moderate interest rate cut. It expects a growth development of just under 2 percent and favourable perspectives for the inflation trend.