In 2013, Swiss prices generally fell, with the average price increase rate falling by 0.2%. Prices of imported goods fell by 1.9% on average, while prices of local goods increased by 0.4%. Products falling in price included clothing, footwear and pharmaceuticals.
At the end of last year, Swiss retailers expressed satisfaction with their Christmas results. Migros, Switzerland’s largest retail group, had the same Christmas sales last year as in 2012, maintaining a stable and high level, and some stores even exceeded 2012. Another retail group, Coop, also said that business last Christmas was very good and satisfactory. Especially in the field of clothing, the retail price of clothing has dropped in 2013, and many stores have adopted price reduction strategies in advance to improve performance, changing from previous promotion plans that only offer discounts after Christmas or New Year.
The recently released retail business index of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (KOF) has also improved, expressing optimism about the Swiss apparel retail industry in 2014.
