Switzerland Balance of Trade

Last Release

Oct 31, 2024

Actual

5,974.29

Units In

CHF Million

4,030.21

Frequency

Monthly

Next Release

Dec 19, 2024

Time to Release

28 Days 7 Hours

Highest	Lowest	Average	Date Range	Source
5,974.29 Oct 2024	-1,478.68 Aug 1989	312.16 CHF Million	1950-2024	Swiss Customs Administration

In 2019, the Swiss trade surplus widened 19 percent from the previous year to CHF 37 billion, as both imports and exports reached new records despite global trade tensions, Brexit uncertainty and Hong Kong protests. The biggest trade surpluses were recorded with the US, India, the UK, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore; and the largest deficits were recorded with the UAE, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Thailand.

Latest Updates

The trade surplus in Switzerland widened to CHF 6.0 billion in October 2024, the highest level on record, up from a revised CHF 4.0 billion in September. Month-on-month, exports surged 10.2% to CHF 24.4 billion, driven by sharply higher sales of jewelry (+28.8%), vehicles (+23.7%), chemical and pharmaceutical products (+15.6%), and watches (+5.1%). Among trading partners, demand rose notably in Slovenia (+105.3%), Brazil (+29.4%), South Africa (+22.2%), and Japan (+20.1%). Meanwhile, imports grew at a much slower rate of 1.8%, reaching CHF 18.4 billion, with increases in purchases of chemical and pharmaceutical products (+6.6%), jewelry (+5.7%), and paper and graphic products (+1.9%). By trading partner, imports primarily grew from Slovenia (+54.6%), Hong Kong (+30.7%), Egypt (+29.4%), and the Netherlands (+21.3%). For the January-to-October period, the trade surplus expanded to CHF 39.5 billion, up from CHF 31.8 billion in the same period last year.