(19.04.2023) The Swiss private sector economy has remained stable since the start of the year. According to the latest report from the Swiss Economic Institute (KOF), the business situation indicator remained unchanged at 27.1 in March compared to February 2023, but declined by 2 points from January.
The manufacturing industry indicator is sharply down at 10.9, which is 3 points lower than in February and even 12.7 points lower than in January 2023. Other sectors, meanwhile, show almost unchanged trends, whether on a monthly basis or over the last three months as a whole.
The construction sector saw a slight increase, rising from 49.9 to 50.3 between February and March. Similarly, the engineering sector also recorded a slow increase to 55.0, compared to 54.7 in February and 54.6 in January. As for the retail trade, it surged by 2.1 points to 15.9.
The situation in the financial services sector appears to be improving more noticeably than in other sectors, with a score of 41.7 points. This represents an increase of 4 points compared to February and 16.9 points compared to December 2022.
Regionally, Central Switzerland and Northwestern Switzerland show the most significant upward trend. However, the regions of Zurich, Eastern Switzerland, the Plateau, and Ticino all show slight progress. Only the business situation index for the Lake Geneva region continues to stagnate.
2022 was heavily marked by post-Covid recovery, followed by the consequences of the war in Ukraine, inflation, and the energy crisis. At the beginning of 2023, there was a slight resurgence of optimism among economic actors. However, this trend seems to be dissipating at the beginning of spring.
Last modification 19.04.2023
