Jade CarlizzaJacqueline TranSolène Pradalet

Content

General dataEconomic situationNegotiation

Geography

General data

Area : 41,285 square kmProductive area : Nord & West

Federal state (26 Cantons)Out of the EU :-Schengen agreement- European Free Trade Association Currency : Swiss franc

population

Groups Amount

Permanent residents 7,800,000

Swiss citizens 6,100,000(78%)

Foreign residents 1,700,000 (22%)

Source: Federal Statistical Office 2009

Foreigners: 21% Yugoslavia19% Italy11% Portugal & Germany Turkey, France (4.7%), Spain…

86% of foreign residents, comes from Europe

International country !

Language distribution

4 national languages, but they vary greatly in the number of speakers.

Economic situation (1/3 )

Economic Indicators (2009) :

GDP: 354 Billion €

GDP per inhabitant: 46 000 €

Growth rate: -1,6%

Unemployment rate: 4,4%

Share of main sectors in GDP: Agriculture : 1,2 % Industry : 27,5 % Services : 71,3 % (including 11% of Financial services)

Inflation rate: -0,2 %

Economic situation (2/3) International trade indicators (2008) :

Budget balance: -0,3 % of GDP (2008) / 0,1% (2009)

Trade balance: +13 Billion €

Main customers : Main suppliers :Germany (19,7%) Germany (33,3%)USA (9,6%) Italy (11,0%)Italy (8,7%) France (9,7%)France (8,6%) USA (5,8%)United Kingdom (5,2%) The Netherlands (4,6%)Spain (3,4%) Austria (4,0%) Exports from France to Switzerland : 12.019 Billion €

French imports from Switzerland : 10.509 Billion €

Economic situation (3/3)

Economic activities:

• Offers more services (banking and insurance)

• Imports a lot because it is a country with few natural resources

• Sells very few manufactured goods

Negotiation

4 Advises to approach the Swiss market -Innovative products without too much competition with local products- Acquire a Swiss company of the same business sector- A real communication " helvétisée " - Get involved in a long-term commitment which bases on a quality offer

Rules of communications during the professional and personal contacts Five keywords: Trust, Consensus, Realism, Collective, Discretion.

Method of payment - The most used means of payment is the transfer (Swift or SEPA).- Payments at sight: under two working days on average. - The payment times: average of 30 days, after reception of the invoice.

InvestmentsKey points

- Strategic geographical position: Europe, Africa and the Middle East. - Attractive legal and statutory environment for companies. - Test country for high-technology products - Very qualified and educated, reliable hand and relatively flexible. - Expenses in technologies of information - Expenses in research and development. - Investment funds of common capital

Weak points

- Very competitive. - Severe rules of the European Union on the quality standards and the packaging of products.

Risk

OCDE : 0/7 (april 2011) EH Sfac : low risk 1/4 (september 2011)

Coface : A1 (april 2011)

Ducroire : Short term: 1/7; Commercial: A (good)

Risk of transfer: 1/7.

Appreciation of the credit manager Moci Country risk: excellent Customer Risk: well (but tendency to the degradation)