Most attractive Swiss cantons for firms

The major bank Credit Suisse has published its annual locational quality indicator study for 2020. This analysis measures the attractiveness of Swiss cantons from the perspective of companies. The canton of Zug has risen to take top spot this year, overtaking the canton of Basel-Stadt in the process. Credit Suisse attributes this development to the corporation tax cuts that entered into force in Zug at the start of 2020. The effective maximal corporation tax rate now amounts to just 11.91 percent for Zug – having stood at 14.35 percent in the previous year.

Behind Zug and Basel-Stadt in the rankings comes the canton of Zurich, followed by the canton of Geneva, which improved by ten places in this year’s study. Fifth place goes to the canton of Aargau, while the canton of Schwyz takes sixth.

Alongside cantonal fiscal policies, Credit Suisse took into consideration the availability of highly qualified experts in its analysis, among other factors. According to the bank’s economists, the standard of education of Swiss professionals has improved markedly over the past few decades. Nevertheless, an urban-rural divide in terms of the availability of highly qualified experts can be seen. In this context, more than 40 percent of potential employees in urban regions and areas close to agglomerations have been educated to degree level. In the city of Zurich, the equivalent value is even as high as 57 percent.

Credit Suisse not only examined cantons, but also looked at the economic regions of Switzerland. The bank is of the view that the analysis at cantonal level, and larger, heterogenous cantons in particular, does not offer a sufficiently comprehensive overview of the situation. According to the results of the study, economic conurbations such as Zurich, Zug, Basel, Baden and Geneva, as well as the metropolitan regions of these cities, rank among the most attractive regions for companies.