The bicameral Federal Assembly, comprising the National Council (the lower house of parliament) and the Council of States (the upper house), elects the seven members of the cabinet, the Federal Council, individually. The four main parties-the Social Democratic Party (SPS), the Free Democratic Party (FDP), the Swiss People's Party (SVP) and the Christian Democratic Party (CVP)-are represented in the Federal Council (the executive or cabinet), as is the Conservative Democratic Party (BDP), a more moderate SVP spin-off The president of the Federal Council—an office that rotates annually among the seven ministers—acts as head of state for ceremonial purposes. The president for 2014 is Didier Burkhalter (FDP). The 200-seat National Council (elected by proportional representation) and the 46-member Council of States (with equal representation from each canton) are equally important in the political process.
The Economist Intelligence Unit's business environment rankings assign a score of 8.46 to Switzerland for 2015-19. This secures the country second position out of 82 globally, behind Singapore (8.63). Regionally, Switzerland retains first place.
The financial sector is reasonably stable. The two largest banks, UBS and Credit Suisse, have limited direct exposure to peripheral euro zone countries. Nonetheless, the sector is exposed to risks such as contagion from the euro zone and a possible housing bubble. The Swiss authorities introduced a tough capital regime going beyond the requirements of Basel III for UBS and Credit Suisse, and the main banks are following the advice of the Swiss National Bank (SNB, the central bank) and the IMF to build capital. Financial institutions also face the erosion of banking secrecy, which could reduce their attractiveness and lead to capital outflows as foreign assets are repatriated.

Switzerland-highlights 7

Political outlook 7

Demographic outlook 7

Business environment outlook 7

Economic outlook 8

Market opportunities 8

Long-term outlook 8

Fact sheet 9

Political outlook 10

Political forces at a glance 10

Political stability 10

Political and institutional effectiveness 11

Election watch 11

Key players to watch 12

International relations 13

Demographic assumptions 14

Business environment outlook 16

Switzerland's business environment at a glance 17

Macroeconomic environment 17

Policy towards private enterprise and competition 18

Policy towards foreign investment 19

Foreign trade and exchange controls 19

Taxes 20

Financing 21

The labour market 22

Infrastructure 23

Economic forecast 24

Policy trends 24

Fiscal policy 24

Monetary policy 24

International assumptions 25

Economic growth 26

Sectoral trends 27

Inflation 27

Exchange rates 28

External sector 28

Foreign direct investment in Switzerland 28

Market opportunities 30

Market outlook 30

Long-term outlook 33

The long-term outlook 33

Methodology for long-term forecasts 35

Data summary 37

Data sources and definitions 42

Guide to the business rankings model 43

Indicator scores in the business rankings model 44

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