The Zurich stock exchange started the week with a fall of 1.8 percent – a loss that recovered to 0.2 percent at closing.
The stock exchange was closed on National Day on Friday when US President Donald Trump announced that the small country in the Alps will get import tariffs of 39 percent. It was clearly higher than what he had previously threatened with.
"Catastrophic" conversation
According to several sources to the Financial Times, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter had a 30-minute long telephone conversation with Donald Trump on Thursday evening, which is described by several as "catastrophic".
The country had previously counted on tariffs of 10 percent, and criticism did not wait in the local media. The tabloid newspaper Blick goes so far as to call it the biggest defeat since the military battle of Marignano in 1515.
"Attractive offer"
But the Swiss government is now ready to meet the US:
"Switzerland enters this new phase ready to present a more attractive offer, which takes into account the US concerns and aims to alleviate the current tariff situation," it says in a statement on Monday, where they highlighted their foreign direct investments and investments in research and development in the US.
They also rule out countermeasures for the time being.
Swiss negotiators have already been in contact with the US to seek a way forward – with a focus on getting at least a longer deadline. President Keller-Sutter does not rule out a last-minute trip to Washington if there is a chance of an agreement.
