Swiss-EU relations strained - ING

Charlotte de Montpellier, economist at ING, suggests that the months pass and nothing changes with regard to the negotiations between Switzerland and the EU for a framework agreement that will frame all relations between the two blocs in the future.

Key Quotes

“Summing up the situation quickly: Switzerland is reluctant to approve the draft of the agreement negotiated for years with the EU. The EU is putting pressure on Switzerland so that the agreement can be signed quickly. The main means of pressure used by the EU is halting the stock market equivalence for the Swiss Stock Exchange, which is necessary for European traders to carry out their Swiss securities transactions directly on the Swiss market.”

“The Swiss have asked the EU for "clarifications" this month in three areas - wage protection, state aid regulation and the definition of EU citizens' rights in Switzerland. If the EU was ready to give clarifications, it strongly insisted that there would be no renegotiations possible. Both sides are therefore encamped on their positions and an agreement before the end of the month seems completely impossible.”

“A European diplomat told Reuters on Friday that the European Commission will not propose to extend the equivalence regime.”

“This is perhaps a way to put pressure on Switzerland. Nonetheless, stock equivalence is more at risk than ever and without a new extension, the equivalence will expire automatically on 30 June.”