Introduction
Background
The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291 as a defensive alliance among three cantons. In succeeding years, other localities joined the original three. The Swiss Confederation secured its independence from the Holy Roman Empire in 1499. The major European powers have long honored Switzerland's sovereignty and neutrality, and the country was not involved in either World War.
Geography
Area
total: 41,277 sq km
land: 39,997 sq km
water: 1,280 sq km
Climate
temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers
Natural resources
hydropower potential, timber, salt
People and Society
Population
total: 8,860,574
male: 4,403,105
female: 4,457,469 (2024 est.)
Ethnic groups
Swiss 69.2%, German 4.2%, Italian 3.2%, Portuguese 2.5%, French 2.1%, Kosovan 1.1%, Turkish 1%, other 16.7% (2020 est.)
Languages
German (or Swiss German) (official) 62.1%, French (official) 22.8%, Italian (official) 8%, English 5.7%, Portuguese 3.5%, Albanian 3.3%, Serbo-Croatian 2.3%, Spanish 2.3%, Romansh (official) 0.5%, other 7.9%; note - German, French, Italian, and Romansh are all national and official languages; shares sum to more than 100% because respondents could indicate more than one main language (2019 est.)
Religions
Roman Catholic 34.4%, Protestant 22.5%, other Christian 5.7%, Muslim 5.4%, other 1.5%, none 29.4%, unspecified 1.1% (2020 est.)
Population growth rate
0.75% (2024 est.)
Government
Government type
federal republic (formally a confederation)
Capital
name: Bern
Executive branch
chief of state: President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)
head of government: President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)
Legislative branch
description: bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung (in German), Assemblée Fédérale (in French), Assemblea Federale (in Italian) consists of:
Council of States or Ständerat (in German), Conseil des États (in French), Consiglio degli Stati (in Italian) (46 seats; members in two-seat constituencies representing cantons and single-seat constituencies representing half cantons directly elected by simple majority vote except Jura and Neuchatel cantons, which use list proportional representation vote; member term governed by cantonal law)
National Council or Nationalrat (in German), Conseil National (in French), Consiglio Nazionale (in Italian) (200 seats; 194 members in cantons directly elected by proportional representation vote and 6 in half cantons directly elected by simple majority vote; members serve 4-year terms)
Economy
Economic overview
high-income, non-EU European economy; top ten in GDP per capita; renowned banking and financial hub; low unemployment and inflation; slowed GDP growth post-pandemic; highly skilled but aging workforce; key pharmaceutical and precision manufacturing exporter; leader in innovation and competitiveness indices
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$634.296 billion (2022 est.)
$618.413 billion (2021 est.)
$586.775 billion (2020 est.)
Real GDP per capita
$72,300 (2022 est.)
$71,000 (2021 est.)
$67,900 (2020 est.)
Agricultural products
milk, sugar beets, wheat, potatoes, pork, apples, barley, beef, grapes, maize (2022)
Industries
machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments, tourism, banking, insurance, pharmaceuticals
Exports
$627.54 billion (2022 est.)
$579.017 billion (2021 est.)
$474.042 billion (2020 est.)
Exports - partners
US 15%, Germany 13%, China 11%, Italy 6%, France 5% (2022)
Exports - commodities
gold, vaccines, packaged medicine, nitrogen compounds, base metal watches (2022)
Imports
$518.451 billion (2022 est.)
$481.093 billion (2021 est.)
$429.875 billion (2020 est.)
Imports - partners
Germany 21%, US 10%, Italy 8%, France 6%, China 5% (2022)
Imports - commodities
gold, packaged medicine, vaccines, cars, garments (2022)
Exchange rates
Swiss francs (CHF) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
0.955 (2022 est.)
0.914 (2021 est.)
0.939 (2020 est.)
0.994 (2019 est.)
0.978 (2018 est.)
Page last updated: Wednesday, June 26, 2024