Investment Guide to Switzer Land

Basic information of Switzerland:

Geographical environment: surrounded by the Alps and the Jura Mountains, Switzerland borders Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein. The maximum distance between the north and the south is 220 kilometers, and the maximum distance between the East and the west is 348 kilometers. Mountains, hills, rivers and lakes form a rich variety of terrain in Switzerland. As an inland country, it has no direct access to the sea.

Climate: the climate of Switzerland is deeply influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, and the climate in the west is marine; The Southern Alps are affected by the Mediterranean, and the winter climate is obviously warmer than that in the north. The temperature in Switzerland mainly depends on the altitude. The average temperature in the northern lowlands is about 1 ℃ in January and about 17 ℃ in July; The corresponding average temperature in the Southern Plateau is about 2 to 3 degrees Celsius higher than that in the northern plateau.

Race: about 75% of the Swiss population and 25% of foreigners

Population structure: Switzerland has about 8.42 million permanent residents (provisional estimate in 2016), accounting for 20.08% under the age of 20, 61.83% between the age of 20 and 64, and 18.09% over the age of 65. Switzerland is one of the countries with the longest life expectancy in the world, with 81.1 years for men and 85.4 years for women.

Education Popularization: the Swiss dual track education system provides Switzerland with good labor force and continuous innovation ability. The Swiss education system is of high quality and fully meets the needs of economic development.

Language: Switzerland has four official national languages: German (63%), French (23%), Italian (8%) and romance (0.5%); Other languages accounted for 5.5%.

Religion: Roman Catholicism 38%, Protestantism 26%, Islam 5%, other religions 31%.

Capital and important cities: the capital (Bern), and the major metropolitan areas from large to small are: Z ü rich, Geneva, Basel, Bern and Lausanne.

Political system: parliamentary federal system, with 26 states (20 states and 6 half States), adopting direct democracy and non EU Member States.

Investment authorities: in the "Federal Economic Affairs Office" (seco) of the Economic Department of the federal government and the "Swiss foreign trade and Investment Promotion Association" (Switzerland global enterprise).

The top five industries with the highest output value: chemical agents and related products; Precision instruments, clocks and jewelry; Machines, tools and electronic products; Chemical end products (including active substances); Drugs, vitamins and testing agents.

Main export products: the top 10 export products in order are: medical preparations, vitamins and medical reagents, drugs, active substances for pharmaceutical use, medical equipment, metal products, electrical and electronic products, chemical raw materials, machinery, measuring, inspection and control machines and tools, and hardware processing machines.

Main exporting countries: in 2017, Switzerland's top 10 trade and export partners were Germany, the United States, mainland China, India, France, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Italy, Austria and Japan.

Main imported products: the top 10 imported products in order are: semi-finished products of various industries, machinery and hand tools, drugs (including sanitary products), machinery and apparatus for service industry, passenger cars, semi-finished chemical products, machinery and apparatus for work, jewelry and handicrafts, semi-finished products made of metal, food, tobacco and alcohol.

Major importing countries: in 2017, Switzerland's top 10 trade import partners were Germany, the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, France, mainland China, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Austria and Ireland.


Chapter I natural and cultural environment

1、 Natural environment

Switzerland covers a total area of 41285 square kilometers. Surrounded by the Alps and Jura Mountains, Switzerland borders Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein, with a total border of 1882 kilometers. The longest distance between the north and the south of Switzerland is 220 kilometers, and the widest distance between the East and the west is 348 kilometers. Mountains, hills, rivers and lakes create rich and diverse terrain in Switzerland. Its rivers have no direct access to the sea, so it is an inland country.

The climate of Switzerland is deeply influenced by the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean, and the western part has a marine climate; The south is affected by the Mediterranean Sea, and the climate in winter is significantly warmer than that in the north. The temperature in Switzerland mainly depends on the altitude. The average temperature in the northern lowlands is about 1 ℃ in January and about 17 ℃ in July; The corresponding average temperature in the south is about 2 to 3 degrees Celsius higher than that in the north.

2、 Cultural and social environment

The permanent resident population of Switzerland is about 8.6 million (in 2019), with Swiss nationality accounting for about 74.7% and foreigners (mainly Italian, German and Portuguese) accounting for about 25.3%. Switzerland is one of the countries with the longest life expectancy in the world, with 81.7 years for men and 85.4 years for women.

Switzerland has four official national languages, namely German (62.2%), French (22.9%), Italian (8%) and romance (0.5%); Other languages accounted for 6.5% (2018). The Swiss dual track education system provides Switzerland with a good workforce and continuous innovation ability. The Swiss education system is of high quality and can fully meet the needs of economic development. In addition to its mother tongue, Switzerland has learned its second national language and English since primary school.

The religious beliefs in Switzerland are Roman Catholicism 35.2%, Protestantism 23.1%, Islam 5.3%, other religions 7.4%, and no religious beliefs 28% (2018).

Switzerland takes Bern as its capital. However, the major cities are Zurich, Geneva, Basel, Lausanne and Bern according to the number of residents.

3、 Political environment

Switzerland is a federal system of government, which is divided into three levels: Federation, local states and municipalities. Switzerland is a federation of 26 local states with a high degree of autonomy. The federal government is responsible for foreign affairs, national security, national defense, customs, business tax, monetary system and national legislation as stipulated in the Federal Constitution; Local states are responsible for health care, education and culture; Through a small and flexible regime, various states compete in various fields, and closely integrate the relations between political groups, business groups and citizens through the Federation. According to the Swiss Federal Constitution, the autonomy of the Swiss people is guaranteed. The people are the top political and legal subjects. Every citizen has the right to directly participate in the construction of the Swiss constitution and legal system through the right to vote. Swiss citizens can request to change or amend the Constitution (the right of creation) through proposals, and can exercise the right of consent or veto (the right of re-election) on the resolutions of the Congress. According to the Convention, Switzerland will hold four federal referendums on federal bills a year. The Swiss Federal Parliament is composed of two chambers, the lower chamber (i.e. the national chamber, which is composed of 200 members representing the people) and the upper chamber (i.e. the federal chamber, which is composed of 46 members representing 26 states). Switzerland has set 20 states and 6 half states according to the proportion of the population. The whole state elects two members of the upper chamber. Half states have at least one member of the upper chamber. It adopts a direct democracy and is directly elected by Swiss citizens every four years.

The federal government, also known as the Federal Council, has seven members, elected by members of the upper and lower houses of the federal Congress for a term of four years. The seven members serve as heads of seven ministries, namely, the Ministry of the interior, the Ministry of foreign affairs, the Ministry of economy, education and R & D, the Ministry of finance, the Ministry of national defense, civil defense and sports, the Ministry of justice and police, and the Ministry of environment, transportation, energy and communications. They are like a joint cabinet, but there is no cabinet premier. The president and vice president are elected by the federal Congress from among the seven federal executive members. They serve in turn for a term of one year. Their functions and powers are only to represent the country externally, so they are vacant. In 2020, Simonetta sommaruga, Minister of the Ministry of environment, transport, energy and communication, will serve as president.

Switzerland, a non EU member state, joined Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and other European countries to form the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in 1960.

Chapter II economic environment

1、 Economic overview

According to the official statistics released by the Swiss Federal Bureau of Economic Affairs (seco), Switzerland's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 grew by 0.9% in real terms over the previous year - private consumption grew by 1.0%, public sector consumption grew by 1.1%, production equipment investment grew by 0.6%, construction and plant investment grew by 0.4%, export goods grew by 2.7% (including jewelry, jewelry and Art), and import goods grew by 0.9% (including jewelry, jewelry and Art), The rate of price increase was 0.4%.

2、 Natural resources

Two thirds of Switzerland is high mountains. In addition to water resources, Switzerland is short of natural resources. There are many lakes and forests. Therefore, Switzerland is rich in tourism resources, abundant in hydropower resources, and surplus electricity is supplied to neighboring countries; Animal husbandry is extremely developed, but agricultural products and necessities for people's livelihood still depend on foreign imports.

3、 Industry Overview

For Swiss enterprises, euro, US dollar and Swiss Franc are the three most common valuation currencies, and the valuation proportion of other currencies is low. Therefore, the impact of international exchange changes between Euro, US dollar and Swiss Franc on Swiss enterprises is much higher than that of other international currencies. The appreciation of the Swiss franc is expected to slow down the growth of the Swiss economy, but it is not enough to cause a recession or even a full-scale economic deflation. Different industries are affected differently by the impact of international exchange rates and economic fluctuations. Even the pharmaceutical and machinery industries, which are all strongly dependent on exports, have different responses to the appreciation of the Swiss franc and the rise and fall of the euro zone. Although the domestic market momentum in Switzerland has weakened, the negative impact on health-related industries is expected to be smaller than that of other domestic demand industries.

Credit Suisse's mid-term industrial evaluation of the Swiss industry pointed out that the factors affecting a single industry, in addition to the ups and downs of the economy, "industrial development and structure" also deeply affect the development of each industry. Credit Suisse evaluates the opportunities and risks of 29 important industries in Switzerland, and systematically evaluates the impact of each "industrial development structure" on different industries, with a view to exploring the medium-term growth trend of each industry under the consideration of risk factors.

The aging population, frequent migration of residents and technological progress affect the industrial structure of Switzerland. The population of Switzerland has increased due to the immigration of foreign immigrants. In order to travel between the place of residence and the place of employment, residents move frequently geographically. In addition, Switzerland also moves very frequently during holidays and leisure. Switzerland's universal access to new energy and new information will help promote Swiss technology. In addition, the gradual affluence of emerging countries also affects the growth of different industries in Switzerland. When Switzerland wants to enter other international markets, its tolerance to the increasing pressure of international competition will have different effects on various industries.

According to the "medium and long term opportunity and risk assessment report of Swiss industry" published by Credit Suisse in 2018, this report includes 32 industries in total, and the total output (added value) of industries accounts for more than 90% of the total output (added value) of Switzerland. The report points out that the top five strong industries in Switzerland are: electronic information industry (ranking first in the total), pharmaceutical industry (ranking second), health care related industries (ranking third), social welfare related industries and nursing homes (ranking fourth), and medical technology industry (ranking fifth). In addition, the electronic information service industry is closely related to technological progress. It often interacts with the innovation and development of different industries across different fields, which helps to form a continuous cycle of innovation. With the aging population in Switzerland, the demand for industries related to health services naturally increases, and the demand for the pharmaceutical industry also grows relatively. However, the reduction of medical related public expenditure in various countries will also slow down the development of pharmaceutical industry and health-related industries. Looking ahead, Switzerland's strong industries are still expected to grow steadily; And provide more job opportunities due to industrial growth. In addition, according to the above data, the top five vulnerable industries in Switzerland in 2018 are: printing and publishing industry (i.e. ranking 32nd in the total), agriculture, forestry, fishery and animal husbandry (ranking 31st), metal industry (ranking 30th), retail industry (ranking 29th) and tourism, catering and hotel industry (ranking 28th). As a result of digital electronization, the printing and publishing industry has been seriously affected. E-books and e-newspapers have replaced physical books. In addition, many information can be easily obtained from the Internet. For the Swiss metal industry, the high cost of production in Switzerland is detrimental to international competition. At the same time, the rise of metal substitutes, such as plastic materials produced under the new material technology, has also led to the decline of the output value of the metal industry. As prices in Switzerland's neighboring countries are cheaper than those in Switzerland, the phenomenon of "overseas shopping" has caused Swiss people to shop in neighboring countries. The trend of "overseas shopping" has continued to impact the Swiss retail industry. In addition, as for the Swiss tourism industry, the competitors in the past were limited to different tourist resorts in Switzerland. Now, under the influence of globalization and international competition, the international competition facing the Swiss tourism industry is becoming more intense through price comparison and room booking through the Internet.

In addition, due to the completion of a large number of commercial real estate projects in Switzerland, the real estate market has been oversupplied, and the vacancy rate is expected to remain high, weakening the growth of the local construction industry.

According to the data of the Swiss Federal Customs Service, the top 10 import industries in Switzerland are chemical and pharmaceutical products, mechanical and electronic products, means of transport, jewelry and jewelry, metal products, textiles, food and luxury goods, energy products, precision instruments and plastic products. (2019). The top 10 export industries of Switzerland are chemical and pharmaceutical products, mechanical and electronic products, clock and watch products, precision instruments, metal products, jewelry and jewelry, food and luxury goods, means of transport, textiles and plastic products. (2019).



（1） Swiss chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries

Swiss chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are important industries in Switzerland. These industries have replaced the metal machinery industry as the largest export industry in Switzerland since 2009. In the past 20 years, the proportion of exports of this industry in Switzerland's total exports has continued to increase, from 28.7% in 1998 to 44.7% in 2017. In 2019, Switzerland's chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries were the largest export industries in Switzerland, accounting for 47.5% of Switzerland's total export value (excluding precious metals), with an amount of about 115billion Swiss francs.

The Swiss chemical and pharmaceutical industry mainly invests in the production of special chemicals and is very international oriented. About 3/4 of the product portfolio is so-called "life science" products, that is, products involving the metabolic process of biological organisms, and 98% of the products are sold abroad. In view of the aging population and the rising awareness of medical care, the development of the pharmaceutical industry has been widely valued by all countries. Therefore, the investment in the R & D and production of chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology in Switzerland continues to increase. It is estimated that the export of the industry will continue to grow steadily in the next few years.

Although Switzerland lacks natural resources, its chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, watch and jewelry industries and banking and insurance industries are developed, and Switzerland has become one of the richest countries in the world today. The Swiss pharmaceutical industry has been flourishing since the 19th century, laying an important foundation for Switzerland in the global pharmaceutical industry. So far, the Swiss chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have developed vigorously. The reasons are as follows: 1 With high international competitiveness. 2. a unique medical and biotechnology industry settlement has been established. Basel, Switzerland, is the center of the Swiss chemical medicine and biotechnology industry, with an excellent educational environment. 3. complete infrastructure, comprehensive protection of patents and intellectual property rights, and flexible financial markets all contribute to the development of Swiss chemical pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

According to the "Global Competitiveness Report" released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Switzerland has been among the best in "innovation", "enterprise R & D" and "industry research cooperation" for many years, and has top talents and excellent R & D and innovation capabilities in the international biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. In addition, Basel, Switzerland is the center of the Swiss chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, with an excellent educational environment. Basel university is a world leader in biochemistry and medicine. Since the 20th century, professors of Basel University have won the Nobel Prize in medicine for many times. In addition, famous Swiss pharmaceutical companies Novartis (Novartis) and Roche (Roche), Syngenta (Syngenta) and some small and medium-sized chemical and pharmaceutical enterprises have established pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry settlements, combining the advantages of the industry university cooperation chain. In addition, actelion, Amgen, Biogen Idec, Crucell and Merck Serono have all set up companies in Switzerland. Switzerland has a perfect legal business environment, well protected patents and intellectual property rights, a vibrant financial market, and a large number of domestic and foreign investments in this industry, all of which contribute to the development of Swiss chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

At present, Switzerland is gradually relaxing the restrictions on drug sales channels, and will open to allow the sale of over-the-counter drugs in general supermarkets in the future. In order to retain customers, traditional pharmacies and cosmetic pharmacies that provide professional drug consultation services will certainly enhance their market competitiveness. In the past, the main sales channels of OTC drugs in China were pharmacies (about 76.31%), clinics, hospitals, and cosmetic pharmacies that provided professional drug consultation services.

In addition, Swiss companies are actively expanding the nutritional supplement market. The global market demand for nutritional supplements is booming, especially in the United States, Latin America, parts of Asia and Eastern Europe. Vitamin lozenges, probiotics to improve gastrointestinal environment, and omega 3 (polyunsaturated fatty acids) to reduce cardiovascular and circulatory diseases are all nutritional supplements. Nutritional supplements come in a variety of forms, including cereal bars, sports drinks and yogurt products. Lonza of Switzerland and Nestle group of Switzerland are actively expanding the market. Nestle group of Switzerland focuses on expanding its participation in the nutritional supplement market with natural food raw materials, such as non genetically modified and organically produced nutritional supplements.

（2） Swiss watch industry

Swiss watches have won the favor of consumers with the century old tradition of mechanical watchmaking and excellent quality. In addition to the world-renowned "made in Switzerland" brand reputation, Swiss watches focus on precision mechanical parts and gorgeous precious jewelry design, strengthen consumers' brand trust in Swiss watches, target high consumption groups and separate the consumer market.

From 1990 to 2000, the average annual growth rate of Swiss watch exports was about 4.3%, equivalent to the average growth rate of Swiss exports in the past 10 years (about 4.6%). From 2000 to 2008, the average annual growth rate of Swiss watch export increased to 6.5%. In 2009, due to the global financial and economic crisis, the Swiss watch export rate briefly fell by 22.3%. However, it grew again by 22.2% in 2010, 19.4% in 2011 and 11.0% in 2012. However, it began to decline in 2015, with exports declining by 3.20% and 9.9% in 2016. In 2017, the export of watches and clocks began to recover, growing by 2.7%. The Swiss watch industry is facing many challenges. In 2018, due to the weak demand in mainland China, the sales declined from 2018, and the performance of Hong Kong gradually declined from the second half of the year. However, the third largest export market of the Swiss watch industry - the United States showed significant growth.

According to the statistics of F é D é ration de l'Industrie horlog è re suisse/fh, the top 10 export markets of Swiss watch industry in 2019 will be Hong Kong, the United States, mainland China, Japan, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Germany, France, Italy and the United Arab Emirates. The total export volume in 2019 was CHF 21680.6 million, an increase of 2.4% compared with the same period in 2018.



According to Swissinfo, Switzerland, affected by the global covid-19 (Wuhan pneumonia) epidemic, as well as the relative epidemic prevention measures taken by various countries, such as closing stores selling non daily necessities, blocking borders and restricting tourism, the sales performance of the Swiss watch industry fell significantly. According to the Swiss watch industry employers' Union, 40000 of the 50000 employees in the Swiss watch industry have applied for reduced working hours subsidies. In addition, according to a report released by Vontobel Bank of Switzerland in early April 2020, the export volume of Swiss watches and clocks is expected to decrease by 25% in 2020. In addition, Olivier m ü ller, an expert of Luxe consult, a Swiss watch professional consulting firm, said that it is expected that the sales volume of the Swiss watch industry will decrease by 20% this year, with up to 16million watches sold, declining to the sales volume in 1945.

Although the epidemic has seriously affected the Swiss watch industry, various brands have suffered varying degrees of blows. For example, well-known brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe, ABI and Omega have suffered less, while many small brand watches have been seriously affected and may even face the crisis of bankruptcy.

Although the covid-19 (Wuhan pneumonia) epidemic and the expected economic slowdown pose a challenge to the Swiss watch industry, in fact, the Swiss watch industry is still facing another long-term problem, that is, the sales of cheap watches in Switzerland are getting smaller and smaller. Last year, the sales of expensive watches in Switzerland (the manufacturer's export price is more than 3000 Swiss francs) increased by about 90000, resulting in an increase in the total export volume of expensive watches; However, at the same time, the sales of cheap watches (below 200 Swiss francs) fell for four consecutive years, with a decrease of about 2.6 million. The Swiss watch industry believes that in order to maintain its leading position in technology and have the ability to manufacture cheap and high-precision watch products, it still needs to maintain energy. If the sales of Swiss watches are only targeted at a small number of wealthy elites, the Swiss watch industry will have a crisis, because only selling expensive luxury goods will not be able to maintain the current employment opportunities of about 60000 people in the Swiss watch industry.

The Swiss watch industry is facing a period of turbulence and challenges. The technological progress in the electronic information age, the rapid development of digital watch products, consumer behavior change factors, the rise of Swiss production costs and the appreciation of the Swiss Franc Currency have caused some small and medium-sized watch manufacturers in Switzerland to fall into market competition and financial difficulties, resulting in the watch industry having to adjust strategies and carry out necessary market integration. In the past, the watch industry was one of the three high value-added industries in Switzerland, providing support for the stability of the Swiss economy. The Swiss watch industry was the third largest export industry in Switzerland after pharmaceutical chemistry and machinery. In view of the rapid growth of the sales volume of smart electronic watches year by year, which has a great impact on the development trend of watches in the future, the Swiss watch industry must strive to find a way out in the face of such competitive pressure. Therefore, it is necessary to try its best to distinguish the consumer market, strengthen the product range, and focus on the transformation of watch functions and appearance design.

（3） Machinery, electronics and metal industry

According to the Swiss machinery, electronics and Metal Industry Association (swissmem), the Swiss machinery, electrical machinery and metal industry is one of the most important industries in Switzerland, providing about half of Switzerland's industrial output value, accounting for 7.1% of Switzerland's GDP. The Swiss machinery, electrical machinery and metal industry has about 324600 employees, which is the industry with the largest number of employees in Switzerland at present, accounting for more than 30% of all Swiss commodity exports. It is an important pillar of Switzerland's economic development.

In 2019, the Swiss mechanical, electrical and metal (MEM) industry received orders, a decrease of 10.6% over the previous year (2018). Sales also decreased by 4.5% over the previous year. In general, the sales volume of large companies fell more significantly than that of small and medium-sized enterprises, and the development of unfavorable businesses also had a significant impact on the capacity utilization of factories.

In 2019, the commodity export of machinery, electrical and metal industries decreased by 2.1% compared with 2018, with an export volume of about CHF 68.3 billion. The main export market is Germany, followed by the United States and Mainland China. In 2019, the export to EU countries decreased by 3.2% (for example, the export to neighboring Italy decreased by 11.4%, Germany decreased by 6.4% and France decreased by 5.9%), while the export to Asia also decreased by 1.7%. However, exports to the United States increased by 3.5%. In addition, the decline in exports of product categories is also different. Compared with 2018, exports of mechanical engineering decreased by 5.9%, exports of metal decreased by 5.7%, exports of electrical engineering / Electronics decreased by 1.4%, and only exports of precision instruments increased by 1.2%. In addition, in 2019, the export amount of machinery, electrical and metal industries to Taiwan was about CHF 430million.

In the first two quarters of 2020, due to the impact of the covid-19 (Wuhan pneumonia) epidemic, the parts and components supply chain in the machinery, electrical and metal industries was seriously affected or even interrupted. In addition, since the beginning of 2020, the appreciation of the Swiss franc against the euro has reduced the competitiveness of the Swiss machinery, electrical and metal industry in its most important EU market (about 56% of the industry's exports are sold to the EU).

80% of the products produced by the members of the Swiss machinery, electronics and metal industry association are for export. Of the products exported, 60% are exported to the European Union, 18% to Asia, and 14% to the United States. At the same time, as the Swiss machinery and electrical machinery industry is deeply dependent on emerging markets (such as mainland China), when the economy of mainland China cools down, it will have a significant impact on the export sales of the industry in Switzerland.

（4） Swiss automobile industry

Electric vehicles still occupy the leading position in the Swiss electric vehicle market. At present, 1.5% of the newly launched vehicles in the world are electric vehicles; In Switzerland, 2.7% of the new vehicles on the road are electric vehicles. At present, there are about 300000 people working in fields related to electric transport tools in Switzerland. Switzerland produces many auto parts and components. Its customers include world-famous electric vehicle manufacturers, such as Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen, Daimler, BMW, Renault and Nissan.

With the increasing awareness of environmental protection and the increasing global demand for cleaner and less carbon means of transport, major automobile manufacturers have also begun to invest in the development of electric vehicles. Switzerland's autoneum Management AG produces lightweight structural parts, such as vacuum tubes, automobile chassis, interior noise reduction and temperature control management equipment. It is estimated that more than 25% of the group's sales will come from pure electric vehicles or hybrid (electric and fuel) electric vehicles by 2025.

Schaffner Gruppe group of Switzerland estimates that the sales of electric vehicle components such as filters will reach about 10% of its total sales between 2020 and 2029. FEINTOOL, a Swiss company, estimates that its sales of electric vehicle components will reach 100million euros by 2025. Teconnectivity Ltd of Switzerland has about 700 employees and produces socket connectors and cables. Bossard AG of Switzerland produces screws, rivets and light structural parts of electric vehicles automatically, and Tesla is its customer. Swiss Georg Fischer Ag produces battery outer box, axle, electric vehicle moving device and linkage system), body and engine parts.

Swiss B ü hler AG is a manufacturer of high-pressure molds, supplying molds to Swiss Georg Fischer AG to produce mobile devices and linkage systems for electric vehicles. Sika AG, a Swiss company, produces special industrial adhesives, which eliminate traditional gold welding and reduce the overall weight of the vehicle. In addition, the special synthetic plastic of Swiss ems-chemie Ag can reduce about 15kg of automobile exterior paint.

（5） Swiss robot industry

According to the new Zurich daily (nzz) on October 29, 2019, Switzerland is full of business opportunities in the service robot market. Roland siegwart, robotics expert of automation system of Zurich Federal Institute of technology, pointed out that the two research centers of Zurich Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) and Lausanne Federal Institute of Technology (EPEL) have developed many technologies related to robotics and UAVs. The demand for service-oriented robots has increased greatly, especially for the logistics and warehousing systems of online digital e-commerce. In addition, in large-scale hospitals, the use of inspection robots (Interpretation of diagnostic data), medical care robots and medical robots has become an upsurge. The agricultural market is an important potential market for service robots in the future. The main enterprises producing industrial robots are abb and PF ? ffiker St ? ubli in Switzerland. Although these two companies research and develop in Switzerland, most of them are produced in other countries. In addition, the Swiss g ü del company has 30 locations around the world, about 1200 employees and a turnover of about 333 million Swiss francs.

Yumi robot produced by ABB in Switzerland is an industrial robot with artificial intelligence technology device. It has "human-computer cooperation ability" - its reliability, accuracy, operation ability, operation ability and interaction ability have been greatly improved. Therefore, Yumi can widely participate in the production line and cooperate with human beings. In addition, industrial robots have long played a decisive role in the logistics, storage and transportation of Switzerland. The logistics center yellow cube in offringen, Switzerland, which is subordinate to the Swiss Post company, has invested a large number of industrial robots, especially in the garment decoration industry through the e-commerce network. Its storage, packaging and transportation are all through industrial robots. At present, the civil UAVs used in Switzerland are used to transport goods, and the research, development and progress of self driving cargo transportation are expected to drive major changes in the future. Service robots can be applied to the hotel catering industry, retail industry and health care industry in Switzerland. Digital wearing devices and technologies are expected to enable the cervical spine injured to stand and walk again. Besides, they can also be used for industrial purposes, such as assisting in the removal of heavy objects on construction sites.

Switzerland has high production costs, especially in terms of labor wages and material procurement. Therefore, the robot industry is facing high labor costs and prices. In addition, the domestic market is small, export-oriented countries are facing strong competition in Global trade. Switzerland hopes that its manufacturing industry can use "industry 4.0" technology to connect digital intelligent machines and systems through automated communication, Continue to collect and integrate the digital information of the production process, and conduct back-end big data analysis, so as to more accurately predict and analyze the future demand and development, and create a new operation mode that makes the overall production supply chain more flexible and meets the customized demand. The Swiss Federal Bureau of economic affairs believes that the introduction of robots into industrial production by enterprises will actually help enhance productivity and promote economic growth. In the future, the supply of components and equipment related to the robot industry, AI, Internet of things applications, sensors, software programs, etc. also contain huge business potential.

（6） Banking

UBS has expanded from its traditional savings and loan business to asset management, personal finance, corporate finance, investment banking, etc. The two major banks are UBS Group AG and Credit Suisse Group AG; Small and medium-sized Swiss banks, such as Raiffeisen bank, postfinance and Z ü RCHER kantonalbank, are mainly engaged in savings, transfer and lending businesses for domestic customers.

In order to strengthen global capital and liquidity supervision, continuously improve the stability of the bank's statutory capital structure and banking system, and determine the global standards for the bank's capital liquidity and leverage ratio, The Bundesrat revised the "eigenmittelverordnung" in November, 2018 to improve the self owned capital adequacy ratio of regional banks oriented to the domestic market. From January 1, 2019, Swiss Raiffeisen bank, Swiss postfinance and Z ü RCHER kantonalbank The three regional banks with domestic market as their business orientation must increase their own capital in accordance with regulations. Since 2016, UBS and Credit Suisse have been applicable to the gone concert Kapital specification. The maximum ratio set by FINMA for these two international banks is 40%.

As three banks, Raiffeisen bank, postfinance and Z ü RCHER kantonalbank, are oriented by the domestic market, have less entanglement with other international financial markets and are less exposed to risks, the self owned capital adequacy ratio applicable to these regional banks is also low. Switzerland uses the means of improving the adequacy ratio of banks' own capital to achieve that banks have the ability to self adjust and restore the ability to pay and repay debts, reduce the social and economic impact of bank losses (or bankruptcy), and avoid the possibility of the government subsidizing bank losses (or bankruptcy) with the state treasury.

In addition, in recent years, Swiss banks have been subject to more and more complex requirements of foreign asset supervision in the cross-border asset management business, which has prompted the Swiss banking industry to focus more on its own core business in the future. "Approaching the client" has always been an important strategy for the Swiss financial industry in asset management.

As the United States, the European Union, OECD and G20 international organizations were dissatisfied with the Swiss bank's assistance in helping rich people in various countries to hide their properties and avoid taxes in Switzerland for many years, they all asked Switzerland to open its bank secrecy mechanism. Under the pressure of international reality, the Swiss government and financial circles finally gave in and publicly expressed their willingness to relax this mechanism. On april15,2009, the OECD agreed not to blacklist it temporarily.

（7） Swiss blockchain industry

According to the data of Switzerland global enterprise, Switzerland has been rated as the European country that provides the most friendly conditions in the development of fintech such as blockchain and cryptocurrency. Switzerland actively promotes the development of blockchain technology, and several initial coin offering (ICO) have been established in Switzerland. The core area of encryption innovation in Switzerland is concentrated in Kanton Zug, which has actively developed into the so-called "crypto Valley". "Crypto Valley" is a crypto innovation industry ecosystem centered on the Swiss state of Zug and its surrounding areas. The system has established close links with other important blockchain innovation research centers in the world. Encryption Valley has promoted star enterprises such as Ethereum. At present, the number of start-ups established in encryption Valley has jumped to about 100.

In order to maintain the advantages of the Swiss fintech market, the Swiss government is committed to reducing the barriers to entry into the fintech market and strengthening Switzerland's international competitiveness as a financial market. The newly revised banking regulations (bankverordnung / bankv) of the Swiss federal government came into effect on August 1, 2017. The new regulations reduce the barriers to entry into the Swiss financial technology market, help establish links between Swiss financial technology enterprises and other important blockchain markets in the world, and also help to enhance Switzerland's International competitiveness as a financial market.

（8） Textile industry

Switzerland focuses on advanced textile technology. A number of high-tech textile manufacturers have become stable champions due to the development of advanced technology. The turnover of the Swiss textile industry in 2019 was about CHF 8.79 billion, a decline of about 4.5% over the previous year (2018). At present, the Swiss textile industry is vigorously promoting innovation and R & D, focusing on advanced textile technology and actively developing high-tech textiles.

China and Switzerland are both countries that actively promote R & D and innovation. The textile industries of the two countries have complementary and mutually beneficial cooperation bases in R & D, design and market development of high-tech textile products, which can mutually strengthen the international competitiveness of textiles of the two countries. The R.O.C. textile international R & D exchange association signed a memorandum of cooperation (MOU) between the two associations with the Swiss textiles Federation on January 31, 2018.

At present, the Swiss Textile Association has about 200 manufacturer members, and its main trading partners are Turkey, Indonesia, Vietnam and Mainland China. The Association understands that China is leading in the development of functional textiles and has made remarkable achievements, so it wants to strengthen cooperation with China's textile industry.

（9） Bicycle market

In Switzerland, 350000 brand-new bicycles are sold every year on average. Switzerland has high requirements for the quality and performance of bicycles. Due to the vigorous development of bicycle leisure and fitness activities, the local bicycle market in Switzerland will still have great potential in the future. The infrastructure related to bicycles in Switzerland is becoming more and more perfect, such as the bicycle marking road of the highway, the bicycle lane in the forest countryside, the traffic signs and driving rules at the intersections where bicycles can pass through, the priority of bicycles and the wide establishment of bicycle parking spaces, all of which have improved the safety and convenience of bicycles, and greatly reduced the driving time. Various incentives have improved the acceptance of bicycles in Switzerland, In the future, the bicycle utilization rate of major cities in Switzerland and nearby satellite cities is expected to continue to grow. There are about 6000 employees in the local bicycle industry in Switzerland, with an annual turnover of about 600million Swiss francs. In the future, the popularity, occupancy and utilization of Swiss bicycles are expected to continue to improve.

The trend of using bicycles for leisure, fitness and sports in Switzerland is booming. The sales and demand of e-bikes will continue to grow. More and more female riders are joining the ranks of bicycle leisure and fitness. With the convenience and practicality of e-bikes, more and more people are encouraged to use e-bikes. Tags anzeiger reported that the price of bicycles, clothing and related components can be easily and quickly obtained through the Internet and smart phones. Local dealers should strengthen the use of digital technology to enable consumers to customize, order and pick up goods online.

China's bicycle industry plays an important role in the world. In Switzerland, almost all high priced bicycles are manufactured in China. The bicycle components of important Swiss bicycle industries such as Stoll, St ? ckli and stromer are all from China. The sales and demand of E-bike are expected to continue to grow. China's high-end bicycle products are deeply loved by the Swiss market, with good quality. It is appropriate to strengthen sales promotion and widely publicize them.

（10） Retail

It is fashionable for major European retailers to join the international procurement group. Through the strong market share of the international procurement group, they enhance their bargaining power with their suppliers, and require suppliers to accept the more favorable supply conditions proposed by the international procurement group, including price reduction, participation in various advertising and promotional activities. Although there are still obvious differences in the economic and retail development of European countries and regions, the retail procurement and distribution channels are both developing towards internationalization, modernization and centralized procurement and distribution, thus gradually integrating into large commercial groups and devouring traditional or small retailers. In Europe, large commercial purchasing groups have retail supermarket sales networks all over Europe. The top six international commercial purchasing groups in Europe are respectively EMD European marketing distribution (group headquarters: Switzerland), Cooper (group headquarters: Germany), agecore (group headquarters: Switzerland), euracuman (group headquarters: France), AMS sourcing (group headquarters: Switzerland) and bigs (group headquarters: Netherlands) according to the total sales volume of the purchasing group members, of which Swiss EMD ranks first in sales volume, Sales focus on "private label goods (i.e. goods branded with retailers)".

Coop and Migros supermarket chain group, the two major retailers selling food and non food commodities in Switzerland, have joined the two major international commercial purchasing groups, agecore and AMS sourcing, respectively, through their strong purchasing power and market share.

4、 Economic outlook

The Swiss Federal Office of Economic Affairs (seco) predicts that Switzerland's gross domestic product (GDP) will decline by 6.7% in 2020 (by 5.6% in 2021); Private consumption declined by 7.5% (by 6.5% in 2021); Public expenditure grew by 2.0% (0.7% in 2021); Construction investment declined by 1.5% (0.0% growth in 2021); Investment in production equipment declined by 16.0% (by 3.0% in 2021); Exports declined by 10.7% (9.6% in 2021); Imports declined by 12.7% (8.4% in 2021); The unemployment rate is estimated to be 3.9% (4.1% in 2021); The consumer price index fell by 1.0% (0.5% in 2021).

(I)  Important economic and trade measures of Switzerland

1. Swiss free trade agreement

As an export-oriented country, Switzerland is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and advocates free trade. It is also a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Switzerland has signed free trade agreements with the European Union and the European Free Trade Association. Therefore, Switzerland has basically exempted all tariffs and quota restrictions on industrial products exported to the EU market. Switzerland became a member of the Schengen region at the end of 2008. However, as it is not a member of the European Union, Switzerland still controls customs clearance, but implements "import and export declaration automation" through the electronic registration verification system (e-dec) and the new computerized transit transfer system (NCTS) through computers and the Internet.

Most of Switzerland's free trade agreements are signed through EFTA, and only a few are signed directly by Switzerland and its trading partners. At present, Switzerland has signed free trade agreements with foreign countries as follows:

A  Agreements in force: EU, Turkey, Israel, Palestinian autonomous government, Morocco, Mexico, Macedonia, Jordan, Singapore, Chile, Tunisia, South Korea, Lebanon, southern African Customs Union (SACU), Egypt, Canada, Serbia, Albania, Colombia, Peru, Ukraine, Montenegro, Hong Kong, Gulf Cooperation Council (CCC), Costa Rica + Panama +efta Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Philippines, Georgia and Central American States * (Central American States)

B  Agreements signed but not yet in force: Ecuador and Indonesia.

C  In the discussion and negotiation: India, the Eurasian Economic Union (eaeu), Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Algeria, Mongolia, Mauritius, Pakistan and Myanmar, the Southern Common Market (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay), and the United States.

Remarks: * Central American countries (including Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala). Except Honduras and Guatemala, the other two signatories have entered into force.

2. Maintain good economic and trade relations with the EU

The EU is Switzerland's most important economic and trade partner. Switzerland will strive to maintain good economic and trade relations with the EU and complete negotiations on the "bilateral framework agreement" with the EU. At present, Switzerland and the EU still have bilateral framework agreements and issues such as the free movement of personnel to be further negotiated. EU Switzerland "rahmenabkommen": Switzerland has been negotiating with the EU on the "bilateral framework agreement" since may2014. Due to the close political and economic relations between Switzerland and the EU, Switzerland is the third largest trading partner of the EU (after the United States and Mainland China), while the EU is Switzerland's first largest trading partner. Switzerland's economy and trade are essentially dependent on the EU. Switzerland's exports to the EU account for 53% of the total exports, and imports from the EU account for 71% of the total imports, Therefore, if Switzerland fails to reach a bilateral framework agreement with the EU, it will have a very negative impact on Switzerland.

The economic and trade agreement between Switzerland and the European Union is based on the free trade agreement signed between Switzerland and the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1972 (which came into force on January 1, 1973). After that, the two sides have supplemented and increased bilateral agreements. At present, Switzerland and the European Union have signed about 120 agreements.

In the negotiation of the bilateral framework agreement between the EU and Switzerland, there is still the issue of wage protection. The so-called "lohnschutz" is a unilateral restriction set by Switzerland to protect Swiss enterprises in its territory and the Swiss local labor market. In 2002, the agreement on the free movement of personnel between Switzerland and the EU came into force, In 2004, Switzerland unilaterally required all enterprises from EU Member States and EFTA Member States to send personnel to Switzerland for work, and their employees must be pre registered with the relevant Swiss authorities 8 days before taking office. On february9,2014, Switzerland passed a referendum to impose strict restrictions on all immigrants (including the 28 EU Member States) including the 28 EU Member States, so as to prevent immigrants from damaging the employment opportunities of Swiss local residents. As Swiss enterprises send employees to work in EU Member States, the EU has no relative restrictions. Therefore, the EU believes that Swiss protection measures are unfavorable to enterprises in EU Member States. Therefore, it advocates that Switzerland should completely abolish this provision, or only maintain salary protection measures in certain specific industries and shorten the number of days (for example, it can register in advance 4 days before taking office). However, there are still differences between Switzerland and the EU on this issue.

Free movement of people: the issue of free movement of people with the European Union has received unanimous attention and heated discussion from both the government and the public. The Swiss SVP people's party has proposed a creative referendum on the "complete termination of the agreement on free movement of people with the European Union". Before this referendum is finalized, it is likely that the bilateral framework agreement between Switzerland and the European Union will be able to make substantial progress.

3. Committed to establishing international economic and trade diplomacy with Asian countries

The Swiss Federal Office of Economic Affairs (seco) pointed out that Switzerland is committed to establishing economic and trade diplomacy with Asian countries, the focus of the global economy has shifted from the west to the East, and the Swiss government has continued to strive to establish various official and non-governmental economic and trade exchanges and cooperation with Asian countries. Mainland China is Switzerland's third largest trading partner, after the European Union and the United States. Over the past 10 years, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Asia has increased significantly compared with that in North America and Europe, and Switzerland is one of the top ten Asian foreign investors. Therefore, the Asian market is extremely important to Switzerland.

In order to strengthen the economic and trade relations between Switzerland and Asia, EFTA signed a free trade agreement with Indonesia in december2018. The free trade agreement just signed between EFTA and Indonesia will be beneficial to Swiss exports.

In the face of the problems caused by the contradiction between globalization and protectionism, governments of various countries try to protect some domestic industries from foreign competition. In order to reduce the obstacles to investment and trade and strengthen economic and trade relations with Asian countries, Switzerland actively negotiates and signs free trade agreements with Asian countries. The Swiss Federal Economic Affairs Bureau also acts as a communication platform and has organized economic and trade missions to Asia for many times, Establish a communication mechanism to remove obstacles to Swiss investment, trade and non-tariff trade.

4. Actively promote the signing of free trade agreements with the United States

It is very important for Switzerland to sign a free trade agreement with the United States. However, the current negotiations between Switzerland and the United States have stalled. According to the analysis of Patrick D ü mmler, researcher of Avenir Suisse think tank in Switzerland, if Switzerland and the United States can successfully sign a free trade agreement, it is expected to increase the bilateral goods trade between Switzerland and the United States by about 14billion Swiss francs. Since the trade negotiations between the United States and Mainland China have not been eliminated so far, and the United States is also negotiating with the United Kingdom on the bilateral trade relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom after brexit, there is no timetable for the bilateral free trade agreement between the United States and Switzerland.

5. Continue to promote tax reform

The European Union removed Switzerland from the grey list of non cooperation in tax affairs on October 10, 2019. In October 2014, Switzerland and the European Union reached an agreement that Switzerland would cancel the tax preference system for holding companies; Since Switzerland had not been able to cancel the tax preference for holding companies by the end of 2017, the EU included Switzerland in the grey list of non cooperation in tax affairs in december2017. On may16,2019, through a referendum, 66% of the people voted for the government to cancel the tax reform of holdingprivilegien. Since Switzerland will cancel the tax law provisions that do not meet the international tax standards from January 1, 2020, the EU believes that Switzerland has implemented the necessary tax reform, so it decided to remove Switzerland from the grey list of tax non cooperation observation at the meeting of EU finance and economy ministers on October 10, 2019.

Switzerland continues to promote tax reform to provide incentives for enterprises to take Switzerland as their innovation and R & D center. The tax law has been revised to reduce the tax burden on enterprises, hoping to retain Swiss enterprises through tax reform, so as to create local employment opportunities and achieve the goal of promoting economic development.

6. Strengthening the pension reform system

Swiss retirement annuity is mainly divided into three pillars, of which the first pillar - old age and survivor annuity insurance AHV and disability insurance IV are compulsory annuity insurance; Pillar II - occupational annuity insurance BVG is also a compulsory insurance, focusing on the occupational annuity insurance of employees. Employers and independent operators can freely take out insurance; The third pillar is non mandatory annuity, which encourages private savings by adding deductions from the income tax law. The Swiss pension system is in urgent need of reform. The Swiss government hopes to achieve the two goals of "filling the financial gap" and "maintaining the current pension payment level" through the pension reform.

7. Central bank maintains negative interest rate policy

Since january22,2015, the Swiss central bank has implemented a negative interest rate policy (-0.75%), that is, through the negative interest rate means of charging interest on the deposits in the central bank, the cost of holding Swiss francs has been relatively increased, in order to prevent foreign investors from buying Swiss francs in large quantities, avoid the appreciation of Swiss francs, and benefit Swiss exports. The SNB's negative interest rate policy remains unchanged.

8. Switzerland plans to exempt import duties on all industrial products from 2022

Switzerland plans to exempt from import duties on all industrial products except agricultural products, including machinery, metals, semi-finished products and consumer products, such as clothes, vehicles, toys, clocks and watches, shampoo and other supplies, from 2022. Through a comprehensive exemption from tariffs on industrial products, local importers can import at a lower cost, and local consumers can buy products at a lower price. Domestic prices are falling, and demand is expected to increase, It also helps to alleviate the high price situation that Switzerland has been maintaining, which is conducive to exports and strengthening industrial competitiveness. According to the research of the consulting company (EcoPlan) entrusted by the Swiss federal government, the overall national economic benefits of CHF 800-900million can be increased every year.

9. Swiss value added business tax

The current Swiss value-added business tax rates are divided into three categories: standard tax rate, preferential tax rate and special tax rate. The value-added business tax rate since january1,2018 is 7.7% at the standard rate, 2.5% at the preferential rate and 3.7% at the special rate. According to the current value-added business tax law (mwstg) of Switzerland, there are many items applicable to preferential tax rates, such as water transported by pipelines (such as tap water, but the standard tax rate is applicable to the treatment of wastewater and wastewater), food and food additives that comply with the Swiss Federal Food and daily necessities law (LMG) (but the standard tax rate is applicable to alcoholic beverages and all kinds of beverages in restaurants), livestock and poultry (birds and poultry for food) Fish and animals for food, Cereals, seeds and seeds, plant flower art, animal feed, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, newspapers, books and printing (only the standard tax rate applies to advertising), radio and television industry (only the standard tax rate applies to advertising), theatres and cinemas, stage plays and music performances, singing and dancing performances, special skills performances, museums and galleries, memorial buildings or cultural relics, historical sites Botanical gardens and zoos, libraries and cultural relics museums (the standard tax rate applies to selling cultural relics or renting sites), entry fees and registration fees for participating in sports competitions, and cultural services provided by copyright owners to promote their own works (articles 25 and 21 of the Swiss Federal value-added business tax law).

5、 Market environment

Swiss people prefer to buy exquisite, durable and high-quality goods, and their consumption patterns are diverse and open. It is a typical market that values quality rather than pursuing low prices. Taiwan's high value-added products can be sold to other European countries in the Swiss market. It emphasizes that green environmental protection and organic products have gradually become the mainstream of consumption. Although the price is slightly higher than that of ordinary products, it continues to be optimistic in the Swiss market.

The outer packaging of Swiss goods is marked in German and French, and the relevant instructions are also written in these two languages. The sales channels of people's necessities and daily necessities are mainly chain supermarkets such as Migros, coop, Denner, manor, globus and jelmoli. Austrian funded spar and German owned Aldi and lidl chain supermarkets have also successfully entered the Swiss retail market.

According to the statistics of Taiwan Customs, the top five products exported from Taiwan to Switzerland in 2019 are: 1 Transformer, electrostatic converter and inductor; 2. machines for receiving, converting, transmitting or reproducing sound, images or other data, including switches and routers; 3. bicycle; 4. machine parts and accessories; 5. other engine or propeller driven turbine parts. In 2019, the top five products imported by Taiwan from Switzerland were: 1 Pharmaceutical products; 2. clocks and watches; 3. machinery; 4. semi finished gold products; 5. chemicals.

Under the influence of globalization and international competition, the trend of online shopping has risen. Therefore, many people living in Switzerland compare prices through the Internet and finally buy goods from online stores. The unit price of foreign online shopping goods may be lower than the selling price of physical stores in Switzerland, but they still have to pay mailing fees and possible tariffs. Among them, the products that do not emphasize after-sales service have the most potential to be promoted through the Internet.

When Taiwan capital purchases or invests in a Swiss company, it can immediately enter the Swiss local market by using the Swiss brand and existing marketing channels, and obtain the existing industrial technology of the Swiss company. In addition, the visit of Taiwan's official and non-governmental industrial and commercial organizations to Switzerland and the holding of economic and trade seminars will also help the Swiss business community further understand Taiwan's industrial development and products, and help to develop the Swiss market.

6、 Investment environment risk

According to the latest international competitiveness report published by the Swiss Institute of international management (IMD), Switzerland ranked 4th in 2019 (Taiwan ranked 16th); According to the 2019-2020 global competitiveness evaluation report released by the Swiss "World Economic Forum" (WEF), Switzerland ranked 5th in global competitiveness in 2019 (Taiwan ranked 12th). According to the first "investment environment risk assessment report" of the U.S. business environment risk intelligence (beri) in 2020, among the 50 countries listed in the global assessment, Switzerland ranks first and Taiwan ranks third (after Switzerland and Norway).

Switzerland has complete infrastructure, political stability, sound laws and regulations, law-abiding people, abundant innovation and R & D talents, open market, social stability, high labor quality, developed financial service industry, convenient transportation, free flow of goods and funds, and maintains the reputation of high-quality products made in Switzerland. Therefore, under the condition of extremely high average wages in Switzerland, it still has a deep incentive to attract enterprises from other countries to invest.