According to a report by the credit insurer Crédito y Caución, private consumption in Switzerland will grow in 2019. The Swiss Central Bank has maintained negative interest rates since 2015, which has helped to contain currency appreciation and will help boost household spending in 2019. Inflation will remain, according to the report's forecasts, below 1% in 2018.
Following Switzerland's solid economic performance in 2018, driven by manufacturing exports, Crédito y Caución expects GDP growth to moderate to around 1% in 2019. This slowdown is mainly influenced by lower external demand from the Eurozone and the United States, and by weaker investment growth.
Switzerland is currently negotiating a new institutional agreement with the European Union. If this agreement is not reached, trade with Europe is likely to be hampered.
Since 2015, Swiss corporate insolvencies have been increasing annually due to the complexity of the economic environment. In 2019, the increase in corporate bankruptcies is expected to be around 5%, reaching 7.200 cases.
