SWISS MARKET OPENINGS FOR US PRODUCTS
Under the framework, Switzerland will cut duties on selected US industrial, agricultural, fish and seafood products it considers non-sensitive.
It will also grant duty-free quotas to the US for 500 tonnes of beef, 1,000 tonnes of bison and 1,500 tonnes of poultry. Washington said Switzerland will also remove tariffs on certain nuts, fruits, seafood and chemicals.
In what the White House described as a significant gesture, Switzerland will recognise US motor-vehicle safety standards, a step US officials hope will ease long-standing barriers to American cars in Europe.
SWISS INDUSTRY WELCOMES LEVEL PLAYING FIELD
Industrial groups hailed the announcement, saying Swiss firms will now compete on the same terms as EU exporters, who secured a 15 per cent tariff level earlier.
“For the industrial sector, this is good news,” said Nicola Tettamanti, president of Swissmechanic. “For the first time, we have the same conditions in the US market as European competitors.”
Swiss machinery, precision instruments, watchmaking and food sectors are expected to benefit the most, said Hans Gersbach of the KOF Swiss Economic Institute. KOF forecasts that Switzerland’s 2026 economic growth could exceed 1 per cent once the tariff cut takes effect.
Swissmem, the technology industry association, reported on Friday that exports to the US fell 14 per cent in the three months through September, while machine-tool shipments plunged 43 per cent under Trump’s earlier 39 per cent tariff.
Economist Nadia Gharbi of Pictet said the new agreement removes “the main downside risks” facing Switzerland’s economy, noting that the country had suffered a competitiveness shock because EU exporters faced tariffs of only about 15 per cent.
Switzerland had a US$38.3 billion goods trade surplus with the US in 2024, which rose to US$55.7 billion in the first seven months of 2025 amid front-loading by US importers ahead of Trump’s tariff hikes.