Switzerland reports record high trade surplus in October

Switzerland reported a record high trade surplus in the amount of CHF 5.97 billion in October, data by the Federal Customs Administration showed.

That compares with a surplus of CHF 4.03 billion in September.

The nation’s total exports went up 10.2% month-over-month to CHF 24.4 billion in October. The latter reflected higher shipments of:

– jewelry (+28.8%);
– vehicles (+23.7%);
– chemical and pharmaceutical products (+15.6%);
– watches (+5.1%).

Swiss exports rose mostly to Slovenia (+105.3%), Brazil (+29.4%), South Africa (+22.2%) and Japan (+20.1%).

At the same time, total imports grew 1.8% month-over-month to CHF 18.4 billion in October. The latter reflected higher purchases of:

– chemical and pharmaceutical products (+6.6%);
– jewelry (+5.7%);
– paper and graphic products (+1.9%).

The Swiss Franc was little changed on the day against the Euro, with the EUR/CHF currency pair last trading at 0.9350.

Investor focus now sets on Euro Area’s final CPI inflation data for October due out later on Tuesday.