Eastern Swiss exporters are confident

The St.Gallen-Appenzell Chamber of Commerce and Industry has analysed export statistics from the Swiss customs authorities for 2020, as was reported in a press release. These reveal that goods and products with a value of 14.9 billion Swiss francs were exported out of the core region of  Eastern Switzerland last year. This equates to a decline of 5 percent on the previous year, while the corresponding decline is just 4 percent for Switzerland as a whole. So, despite Eastern Swiss products still being in demand throughout the pandemic, the coronavirus crisis has nonetheless left its mark on the region.

However, there were differences between the various regions and sectors. The export decline in the canton of St.Gallen amounted to 3.1 percent last year, while Thurgau was down 7.7 percent, Appenzell Ausserrhoden 12.5 percent and Appenzell Innerrhoden 13.4 percent. Breaking the figures down by sector, manufacturers of data processing devices as well as of electronic and optical devises, part of the  mechanical engineering, electronics and metals (MEM) industries, in fact registered a rise of 13.9 percent in exports. The whole MEM sector exported goods worth 10.2 billion francs out of Eastern Switzerland in 2020. “This means that almost 70 percent of all exports from the region were by MEM companies,” said Alessandro Sgro in the press release, chief economist at St.Gallen-Appenzell Chamber of Commerce and Industry. However, the MEM sector as a whole has suffered a decline of 3.9 percent. “Despite the rays of hope, Eastern Swiss foreign trade will suffer under the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic for a while longer yet,” Sgro said.

Nonetheless, Eastern Swiss export companies are confident looking to the short and medium-term future. With regard to the figures of the KOF Swiss Economic Institute at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH), the Chamber is expecting a rise in export contracts over the next three months. What’s more, the portfolio of foreign orders is strong. However, the collapsed talks with the EU are a cause for concern. “The failure of bilateral I would be a tough blow for Eastern Switzerland as an exporter and therefore for the economy as a whole in the long term. It would endanger the future competitiveness of companies in the core region of Eastern Switzerland,” said Markus Bänziger, Director of the St.Gallen-Appenzell Chamber of Commerce and Industry.