Doing Business in Switzerland
General Country Information
SWITZERLAND… a land of opportunities
Total area: 41,293
sq. kilometers (25,800 sq. miles)
Total boundaries: 1,852 km (with Austria, France, Italy, Liechtenstein,
and Germany)
Population: 7,283,200 (2001 est.)
Capital: Bern
Major Cities: Basel, Bern, Geneva, Lausanne, Lucerne, and Zurich
Founding Date: August 1, 1291
Hear
the Swiss National Anthem (MP3)
About
the Swiss National Anthem
The
Federal Council
(The eight members form the country's Executive Branch of government)
Switzerland's origins date back to 1291, when three small Alpine cantons joined forces to create an alliance following democratic principles. Since 1848, Switzerland has been a federal state, consisting of 23 cantons, three of which (Unterwalden, Appenzell and Basel) are divided into two half-cantons for historical reasons, and the most recent of which was formed in 1978 (canton of Jura). There are several German-speaking and French-speaking cantons, one Italian-speaking canton and cantons in which both German and French are spoken. In one canton (Grisons) German, Italian and Rhaeto-Romanic (Rumantsch) are spoken. There are also cantons which are virtually made up of just of one city (e.g., Geneva).
As the world's oldest existing direct democracy and a recognized symbol of peace, Switzerland has gained a unique appeal across the globe. Its appealing qualities are also prominent in business and trade. Each year Switzerland attracts extensive foreign direct investment because of the strength of its economy, its state-of-the-art infrastructure, its favorable legal and tax systems, its highly skilled workforce, and its stable government policies. The country also represents a key location for foreign companies to deal with the European market. Switzerland consistently ranks among the top 10 countries in economic studies and is one of the leading economies in Europe based on per capita GDP.
Today, over 600 U.S. companies, including a number of Fortune 500 companies, have set up operations in Switzerland, helping increase total U.S. investments in the alpine country to nearly $60 billion. Furthermore, Switzerland is a key to Europe, both as a geographically ideal location, with much of the continent's transportation, telecommunications, and energy crossing the country, and economically, with some of the strongest financial institutions in the world headquartered in the country.