Overall, exports in October totaled 22.94 billion francs, as the Federal Office of Customs and Border Security (BAZG) announced on Thursday. Thus, exports decreased by 1.1 percent in seasonally adjusted terms compared to the previous month. In real terms—that is, adjusted for price changes—the result was a minus 1.8 percent.
In September, exports increased markedly. And for the entire third quarter, an all-time high was reported. However, BAZG does not see the current decline as a trend reversal: The positive trend is still intact, according to the communiqué.
According to the information in October, more than half of the product groups gave negative signals. It was especially evident in watches (-4.3%), machinery and electronic devices (-2.8%), and metals (-2.7%). Exports of chemical-pharmaceutical products, which account for about half of all exports, stagnated.
Geographically only exports to North America increased (+5.2%) according to BAZG. Those going to Asia fell by 4.7 percent and those going to Europe fell by 1.9 percent.
Imports also fell in October. It fell 1.4 percent to 19.97 billion (actual: -0.8%). As a result, the trade surplus was CHF 2.98 billion compared to CHF 2.93 billion the previous month. As a reminder: in February Switzerland had a record value of 5.5 billion for this important figure.
(SDA)