Swiss Economy Starts Year With Unexpectedly Strong Growth
- GDP grew 0.5% in first quarter on domestic demand, est. 0.1%
- Coming months ‘don’t inspire optimism,’ industry says
Economists predict an expansion of 0.6% in Switzerland in 2023.
Photographer: Pascal Mora/BloombergThe Swiss economy picked up momentum in the beginning of the year after a stagnant finish of 2022, while industry outlook and factory orders point to more difficult times ahead.
Gross domestic product grew by 0.5% in the first quarter, according to government data published Tuesday. That exceeds every single economist estimate in a Bloomberg survey, which had a median forecast of 0.1%. The main driver of the recovery were domestic consumption, which made up for flat government demand.