"Thanks to the minimum exchange rate the franc was stable in 2012, and since the start of 2013 has lost some of its strength"
- Analysts at Credit Suisse Group AG
The number of people out of work in Switzerland soared to the highest level since January 2011, adding to concerns that economy is not on the way to recovery yet and another slowdown may be expected. The report by State Secretariat for Economic Affairs showed that the overall unemployment rate on a non-seasonally adjusted basis stood at 3.4% in January. At the same time the jobless rate matched analysts' expectations and rose 1 percentage point from the previous month's 3.3%. There were 201,776 job seekers last month, 4,878 more than last month.
In a separate report on Thursday, the Swiss Federal Statistical Office said that nation's retail sales rose 5.1% in December from the same month the previous year, beating analysts' estimate of a 3.2% hike. On an annual basis, retail sales added 5.1% in the last month of 2012, up from a 3% increase in the previous month.
"Thanks to the minimum exchange rate the franc was stable in 2012, and since the start of 2013 has lost some of its strength," said analysts at Credit Suisse Group AG, which co-compiled the index. "Simultaneously with the depreciation, industry appears to have finally passed the trough," they said.
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