Switzerland's trade surplus rose in February

According to the report from Federal Statistical Office, as in January, exports also rose in February 2019, seasonally adjusted by 2.3 percent (real: + 1.3 percent). This continued the positive trend in exports recorded since September 2018. Meanwhile, after two strong growth months in February, imports slipped into negative territory (- 1.2 percent, real: - 3.0 percent), but remained well above the 17 billion Swiss franc mark in terms of sales. The trade balance showed a surplus of 2.0 billion Swiss francs.

Sales of chemical-pharmaceutical products made the biggest contribution; Their exports grew by 3.9 percent (+ CHF 356 million). At the same time, they posted a new monthly record of 9.5 billion Swiss francs. Since September 2018, the trend is pointing upwards. Watch exports are also on the upswing, rising by 1.1 percent in the month under review. For the other product groups, exports of metals increased by 3.2 percent. Overall, however, the division has shown a slight downward trend since early 2018.

Almost all divisions were responsible for the decline in imports. In particular, supplies of costume bijouterie and jewelery (under other categories of goods) dropped by 80 million and those of vehicles by 66 million francs. The latter show an overall downward trend since the beginning of 2018. Imports of chemical-pharmaceutical products, the largest division, showed a reduction of 49 million Swiss francs after two months of dynamic growth in February 2019.