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U.S. and Switzerland Establish a New Trade and Investment Forum

NEW YORK, June 6 – The “U.S.- Switzerland Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement” signed May 25 marks a significant step to strengthening the already robust economic relations between countries that in 2005 enjoyed more than $24 billion in two-way trade, said Mario Brossi of the Swiss Foreign Investment Agency Location: Switzerland, based here. “Despite Switzerland’s small size, it is the 18^th largest U.S. export market,” Mr. Brossi said. “Even more impressively, after Germany, the U.S. is the second largest market for Swiss goods and services.

“Beyond trade, economic ties between the U.S. and Switzerland include approximately $223 billion in foreign direct investment,” Mr. Brossi said. “During 2005 there were 41 new investment projects and 19 expansions by existing investors from the United States along with projects from Canada and Mexico. Comparable figures for 2004 were 18 new and 10 expanded projects.

“In 2003-2004, US direct investment into Switzerland amounted to $26 billion,” Mr. Brossi said. “At present, US firms have invested over $101 billion in our country, more than in the Middle East and South America combined.”

The May 25 agreement creates a forum for moving ahead with bilateral mutual recognition agreements or other accords in specific sectors where there is common ground, and for promoting increased investment, Mr. Brossi explained. “The major roadblock to a full Free Trade Agreement were differences on agriculture policies,” he said. “These may be resolved at a future date.

While there are many criteria that multinational firms evaluate when selecting an overseas base of operations, Switzerland continues to actively compete for such investments, Mr. Brossi commented. “This is born out by a study jointly authored by the Boston Consulting Group and the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce,” he said. “There is growing recognition in Switzerland that framework conditions and other competitive considerations need to be continually monitored and where possible, improved.”

The signing of the US-Switzerland Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum confirms that Switzerland continues to be an attractive partner of the world’s largest economy and continues to enjoy outstanding brand recognition in political as well as business circles.

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Contact: John Williamson +908 730-9622 or johnhwilliamson@earthlink.net