Switzerland

Swiss delay AstraZeneca COVID vaccine approval, order more shots from others

ZURICH, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Switzerland has withheld approval for AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, drugs regulator Swissmedic said on Wednesday, demanding more efficacy and quality data before greenlighting a shot that…

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Coronavirus cases in Switzerland and Liechtenstein pass 500,000 mark

Coronavirus infections in Switzerland and Liechtenstein passed the 500,000 mark on Tuesday, data from Swiss health authorities showed, as new infections rose by 2,260. The total number of confirmed cases…

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Two hotels quarantined in the Swiss resort of St Moritz

Officials in the Swiss mountain resort of St Moritz quarantined employees and guests of two luxury hotels, closed ski schools and kept schoolchildren home from class on Monday after a…

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Swiss set to approve AstraZeneca COVID vaccine this month

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine could win Swiss regulatory approval as early as this month, the NZZ newspaper reported on Saturday, citing two unnamed sources. It said watchdog Swissmedic plans a meeting…

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Swiss minister expects regulator to approve Moderna COVID shot ‘very soon’

Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset said he expects Switzerland's drugs regulator swissmedic to approve Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine "very soon", suggesting a wait of just days, not weeks. "The signals…

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Swiss economy could grow by 4% in 2021 and 2022

The Swiss economy could grow at more than double its usual rate in 2021 and 2022, with GDP increasing by around 4% in both years as output recovers from the…

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Swiss add Denmark, Netherlands to quarantine list

Swiss health authorities added Denmark and the Netherlands to their list here of areas from which travellers must enter a 10-day quarantine designed to curb the spread of COVID-19. The…

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Switzerland says residents who want a COVID-19 shot should get one by summer

Everyone in Switzerland who wants to be vaccinated against COVID-19 should be able to get a shot by summer, a Swiss health official said, as the nation anticipates imminent approval…

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Link between COVID-19 shot, Swiss death ‘highly unlikely’

Swiss drugs regulator swissmedic said it saw no link between the death of a 91-year old person in the canton of Lucerne and the COVID-19 vaccine, adding the deceased suffered…

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Swiss police probe 12 Brits suspected of fleeing ski resort quarantine

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss police said on Wednesday they are investigating 12 cases in which British tourists ignored quarantine orders aimed at containing new COVID-19 virus variants after hundreds of…

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Swiss canton says person died after COVID-19 shot, unclear if there is a link

ZURICH, Dec 30 (Reuters) - A Swiss person who was among the first in the country to be vaccinated with a COVID-19 shot later died, officials in the canton of…

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British skiers flee Swiss Ski Resort quarantine

ZURICH (Reuters) - Hundreds of Britons have fled quarantine in the Swiss ski resort of Verbier, with the country’s health minister attributing the exodus to an “impossible situation” where authorities…

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A silent night … with headphones

A person wearing protective face mask listens with silent disco headphones on Christmas Eve during 'The Silent Night, Christmas in the ears' event during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at…

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Ninety-year-old woman first in Switzerland to get COVID-19 shot

A 90-year-old woman in the canton of Lucerne on Wednesday became the first person in Switzerland to be vaccinated against the new coronavirus, as the Swiss military distributed a first…

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Swiss authorities report 4,275 new cases of Covid-19

Coronavirus infections rose by 4,275 cases in a day, data from Swiss health authorities showed on Tuesday, as the country closed restaurants and recreational sites to slow the spread of…

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Swiss report 10,000 new coronavirus cases over three days

Coronavirus infections rose by 10,002 since Friday, data overview from Swiss health authorities showed on Monday, as Switzerland headed toward tougher restrictions on public life starting on Tuesday to curb…

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Swiss drugs regulator authorises Pfizer/Biontech COVID-19 vaccine

Swiss drugs regulator Swissmedic has authorised the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer and partner BioNTech, the agency said on Saturday, calling it the world's first such approval under a standard procedure.…

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Switzerland urges people to stay home

Switzerland is heading for a second lockdown as the government ordered restaurants and sports and recreation centres closed for a month from Tuesday and urged people to stay home. Backing…

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Photo Story: Exhibition in Switzerland of Auguste Rodin and Hans Arp sculptures

A selection of photos from the exhibition of Auguste Rodin and Hans Arp sculptures that has just opened for the public at the Fondation Beyeler in Riehen, Switzerland. The artwork…

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Swiss hospitals implore health minister to tighten coronavirus restrictions

The directors of five of Switzerland's largest hospitals have written to the health minister asking for urgent measures to reduce coronavirus infections, the SonntagsZeitung newspaper reported on Sunday. In their…

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Swiss freeze assets of Belarus leader Lukashenko

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland has frozen the financial assets of the president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, following the violent aftermath of the elections in the east European country. Lukashenko and…

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Emergency vaccine approval not legal option in Switzerland – Swiss agency

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss authorities said an emergency approval for vaccines, such as the coronavirus vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, was not a legal option in Switzerland. "Swissmedic works closely…

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Swiss-Italy rail link to return to service

Rail connections between Italy and Switzerland will no longer be halted due to concerns about the spread of the new coronavirus, the Italian transport ministry said. All cross-border trains between…

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Swiss expand coronavirus risk quarantine list, adds United States

Switzerland has expanded its list of countries here with a high risk of coronavirus infection from which new arrivals must quarantine themselves for 10 days, the Federal Office for Health…

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Photo Story: Heavy snowfall in St. Moritz

Cars are covered with snow in St. Moritz, Switzerland after a heavy snowstorm during the night between Friday and Saturday. Due to a heavy snowfall and strong wind, the International…

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Swiss approve agreement on service workers mobility with Britain

Switzerland has approved an agreement to allow free movement of service workers between the country and Britain after Brexit, the Bern government said. The Services Mobility Agreement (SMA) between Switzerland…

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Nestle to invest 3.2 bln Sfr to cut carbon emissions

Nestle said on Thursday it plans to invest 3.2 billion Swiss francs ($3.58 billion) over the next five years, giving details on how it wants to reach its goal of…

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Swiss firms narrowly avoid ‘Responsible Business’ liability as vote divides nation

Swiss firms narrowly avoided facing greater liability for human rights and environmental abuses on Sunday after a national vote rejected the proposal due to regional differences despite it winning majority…

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Swiss suspect terror link in department store attack in Lugano

A Swiss woman grabbed a woman by the neck and wounded another in the neck with a serrated knife in a department store in the southern Swiss city of Lugano…

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Swiss doctors urge COVID vulnerable to declare end-of-life wishes in advance

By John Miller - ZURICH, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Swiss doctors have urged those vulnerable to COVID-19 complications to record their wishes for end-of-life care in advance to help ease…

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Switzerland starts ‘rolling review’ of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine

Switzerland has begun a rolling review of Moderna's, COVID-19 vaccine candidate so it can give it a speedy approval should it pass muster in clinical trials, the country's drug regulator…

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Zurich Insurance plays down impact of COVID-19 claims

Zurich Insurance Group does not expect property claims triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic to materially affect the group, Europe's fifth-largest insurer said on Thursday, adding that it planned to maintain…

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Switzerland tries to revive stalled EU treaty

Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga called European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday to outline Bern's proposal to unblock a stalled bilateral treaty, von der Leyen said in a…

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Shooting incident in Swiss town of Biel

Police in the Swiss town of Biel deployed on Thursday evening after reports of shots being fired, the Blick newspaper reported, but the local Berner Zeitung newspaper quoted police as…

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Two arrested in Switzerland visited Vienna’s attacker

The two men arrested in the Swiss town of Winterthur near Zurich last week over possible links to a jihadist shooting attack in Vienna on Nov. 2 visited the attacker…

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Swiss report 10,073 new coronavirus infections, 73 more deaths

Coronavirus infections rose by 10,073 in a day, data from Swiss health authorities showed on Wednesday, as the Alpine country is trying to slow the spread of COVID-19. The total…

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Geneva introduces partial lockdown

Faced with the worsening Covid-19 situation, canton Geneva will enter a state of semi-confinement from 7pm on Monday. Bars, restaurants and non-essential shops will be closed; schools will remain open.…

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Swiss report more than 17,000 new coronavirus cases over weekend

Coronavirus infections rose by 17,440 over the weekend, data from Swiss health authorities showed on Monday, as the government considers tightening restrictions meant to slow the accelerating spread of COVID-19.…

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Photo Story: Trump cartoon exhibition in Switzerland

Photos from the new exhibition "It's shaping up for the White House" at the House of Press Illustration (in French Maison du dessin de presse), in Morges, Switzerland. At the…

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STMicro sees more sales growth in fourth-quarter despite Huawei ban

Franco-Italian chipmaker STMicroelectronics is expecting strong demand from the car and mobile phone industries to boost sales growth in the fourth quarter as it braces for a loss of revenue…

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Nestle shrugs off COVID-19 impact thanks to pet food and health nutrition

Nestle raised its guidance for 2020 organic sales growth to around 3% after beating third-quarter expectations on Wednesday with 4.9% growth driven by strong demand for pet food, coffee and…

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Machines to ‘do half of all work tasks by 2025’

Half of all work tasks will be handled by machines by 2025 in a shift likely to worsen inequality, a World Economic Forum report has forecast. The think tank said…

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Swiss tighten measures to combat COVID-19 second wave

Switzerland announced tighter restrictions on Sunday to tackle the second wave of the coronavirus hitting the country, including a nation-wide obligation to wear masks and a ban on large scale…

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Photo Story: The light spectacle ‘Rendez-vous Bundesplatz’ in Bern

The light spectacle 'Rendez-vous Bundesplatz' projects images onto the facade of the Bundeshaus, the Swiss Parliament building, at the Bundesplatz (lit.: Federal Square) in Bern, Switzerland. EPA-EFE/MARCEL BIERI

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Swiss to buy 5.3 mln doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine

Switzerland signed a contract for up to 5.3 million doses of a potential COVID-19 vaccine being developed and tested by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, the Swiss government said on Friday.…

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Roche confirms 2020 outlook as COVID-19 diagnostics surge

The frantic global effort to test people for COVID-19 pushed Roche's diagnostics division to record revenue, helping the Swiss drugmaker offset declining drug sales and keeping it on track to…

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Photo Story: ‘Chaplin’s World by Grevin’ in Switzerland

Swiss Eugene Anthony Chaplin, son of Charlie Chaplin and recording engineer and documentary filmmaker, poses for a photo with a wax figure of Charlie Chaplin in the room dedicated to…

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New Swiss chief negotiator seeks “good will” to resolve EU impasse

Switzerland swapped out its chief negotiator with the European Union on Wednesday, aiming for what Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis called "new elan" in talks over a stalled bilateral treaty with…

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France, U.S. and Russia to meet on Nagorno-Karabakh amid fears of regional war

France, the United States and Russia will step up efforts to end fighting between Azeri and ethnic Armenian forces in the South Caucasus by holding talks in Geneva on Thursday,…

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Switzerland reports more than 1,000 new coronavirus cases in a day

The number of new coronavirus infections rose by 1,077 in a day, data from Switzerland's public health agency showed on Wednesday, the first daily increase of more than 1,000 since…

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Lufthansa’s Swiss unit plans 1,000 job cuts over two years

Lufthansa unit Swiss International Air Lines plans to cut roughly 1,000 jobs over the next two years through voluntary measures rather than layoffs, its outgoing Chief Executive Thomas Kluehr said…

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Documentary film on assassination of Jamal Khashoggi released

A documentary film featuring the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi was released Friday at the Zurich Film Festival. “The Dissident,” directed by award-winning American director Bryan Fogel, received a lot…

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Travel slump threatens 46 million jobs, aviation group says

The impact of the coronavirus on travel may cost as many as 46 million jobs globally, according to projections published on Wednesday by an aviation industry group. The Air Transport…

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Study finds no clear link between school opening and COVID surge

Widespread reopening of schools after lockdowns and vacations is generally not linked to rising COVID-19 rates, a study of 191 countries has found, but lockdown closures will leave a 2020…

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Nestle CEO says pandemic has made management more hands-on

Food company Nestle SA said the COVID-19 pandemic has forced its senior management to become more immersed in daily operations as executives need to deal with safety and business continuity…

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Novartis CEO says it will take more than vaccines to fight COVID

Vaccines alone will not be enough to fight Covid-19, Novartis AG Chief Executive Officer Vas Narasimhan said. Treatments will also play a crucial role. Significant supplies of highly effective vaccines…

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Swiss voters clearly reject curbs on EU immigration

Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected on Sunday a right-wing party's attempt to scrap a pact allowing the free movement of people from the European Union, opting for stability amid the economic…

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