Press Releases

For 2024, KOF is forecasting a 1.2 per cent increase in gross domestic product (GDP) adjusted for sporting events. The sluggish global economy and declining investment in particular are slowing the growth of the Swiss economy. The outlook for 2025 is more positive, with a growth rate of 1.8 per cent in sport-adjusted GDP being forecast.

The KOF MPC figure for 26 October 2023 is 0.29. At today’s meeting, the ECB’s Governing Council decided to keep the three key ECB interest rates unchanged.

The Swiss economy is currently characterised by two opposing trends. On the one hand, private consumption and the robust labour market are supporting the domestic economy. On the other, the weakness of the global economy is weighing on the export-driven Swiss economy. All in all, KOF expects real gross domestic product (GDP), adjusted for major sporting events, to increase by 1.2 per cent this year and by 1.5 per cent next year.

In March, KOF and the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) newspaper surveyed 110 economists at Swiss universities on their assessments of inflation and monetary policy in Switzerland. More than half of these respondents reckon that the key interest rate will be positive in the next five years. An interest-rate move by the SNB is not expected until the ECB has raised its key rate.

The KOF MPC figure for 3 February 2022 is 0.15. At today’s meeting, the ECB’s Governing Council confirmed its monetary policy stance.

The KOF MPC figure for 21 January 2021 is 0.00. At today’s meeting, the ECB’s Governing Council has reconfirmed the need for a very accommodative monetary policy stance.

The KOF MPC figure for 10 December 2020 is -0.21. At today’s meeting, the ECB has recalibrated its monetary policy instruments, as the inflation outlook is weaker than previously anticipated.

The KOF MPC figure for 29 October 2020 is 0.00. At today’s meeting, the ECB’s Governing Gouncil communicated that it will recalibrate its instruments to counteract the impact of the pandemic on the projected inflation path in December.

The Swiss electorate will be voting on 10 June 2018 on the popular initiative “For Crisis-proof Money: Money Creation only by the Swiss National Bank!” (Sovereign Money Initiative). In collaboration with SRF, KOF asked research economists in Switzerland what they think of the initiative. While the majority of survey respondents reject this proposal, they concede that there is need for action when it comes to financial stability.