Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Historical horns, dog days, ample alliteration – it’s all in Tuesday’s briefing, along with other news and stories from Switzerland.
In the news: Chocolate sales, residential property prices, new Julius Bär boss, and another body found in Ticino following storms.
Lindt & Sprüngli reported chocolate sales of CHF2.16 billion ($2.43 billion) in the first half of the year, a slight increase from the previous year. Operating profit (EBIT) rose by 14.6% to CHF292.3 million, outpacing sales growth.
Residential property prices in Switzerland showed varied trends in the first half of 2024. While the cost of condominiums rose compared to the end of 2023, single-family homes became more affordable over the same period.
Bank Julius Bär has announced the appointment of Stefan Bollinger as its new CEO, following a months-long search. Bollinger will succeed Philipp Rickenbacher, who resigned in February after a significant write-down on loans to the Signa Group.
Another body was discovered in the Maggia river near Cevio, Ticino, yesterday evening. This marks the seventh body found in the Maggia River following recent storms.
Dü-da-do! The distinctive three-note horn of Switzerland’s Postauto buses is celebrating its centenary this year.
Around a third of the country’s 2,300 Postbuses are equipped with the tri-tone horn in addition to the standard horn. Mountainous canton Graubünden in eastern Switzerland has the densest horn network, followed by Valais and Ticino.
At the beginning of the Postbus service on the Alpine roads, Swiss Post was confronted with an increase in the number of accidents due to the growing volume of car traffic. To ensure safety on the mountain roads, it introduced the Postbus horn in 1924.
Today, drivers sound the warning according to official regulations: the use of the 120-decibel Post horn is restricted to “mountain post roads”. These roads are marked by a yellow horn on a blue background. The three-tone horn is not used in built-up areas. Drivers step on a pedal with their left foot, causing air to flow from the pressurised air tank to the horn and produce the three notes. This then sounds from the three horns on the underside of the vehicle. Dü-da-do! (Not to be confused with New German Wave synth classic Da Da DaExternal link.)
The catchy triad of notes comes from the overture to the opera William Tell by Italian composer Rossini. The sound sequence consists of the notes c-sharp/e/a. Almost every Swiss child can sing them, and the drivers sometimes make an exception and play the horn for special events, according to Swiss Post. Horns are tuned every few years so that the notes sound pure.
The Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) today published its reportage on a visit to the EmmentalExternal link, to the only company allowed to make the Postauto horns.
The dog days – traditionally the hottest days of the year – began today. However, new temperature records are not expected in the near future.
The dog days will last until August 23. According to MeteoNews meteorologist Roger Perret, it is “quite possible, almost to be expected” that the heat records for 2024 could still be broken. The hottest days of the year typically fall between July 23 and August 23. The Earth’s surface warms up slowly over the course of the year due to its inertia, and a stable high-pressure system often occurs in the region during this time.
Perret explains that the term “dog days” derives from the constellation Canis Major, specifically its main star, Sirius. The dog days begin with the first rising of this star, visible from Earth. The ancient Greeks and Romans believed that the heat during this period was due to the combined influence of Sirius and the Sun.
However, the precession of the Earth’s axis has shifted the timing of the dog days by about four weeks. Now, the rising of Sirius can only be observed at the end of August. Despite this, the hottest weeks of the year are still traditionally referred to as the dog days. Precession is defined as the gradual backward movement of the point of intersection (vernal equinox) between the celestial equator and the ecliptic, caused by the gyroscopic movement of the Earth’s axis over some 26,000 years.
On Inside Geneva this week we bring you part three of our summer profile series. This week we talk to a doctor looking for treatments for some of the world’s most neglected diseases.
Join host Imogen Foulkes on Inside Geneva to listen to the full interview.
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