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The
annual increase beat Reuters forecasts for 1.4% as broadcast
revenues from both sporting events almost doubled GDP generated
in the arts, entertainment and recreation.
As Switzerland hosts sports organizations such as European
soccer's governing body UEFA and the International Olympic
Committee, it generates added value from the sale of licenses,
marketing rights and ticket sales for the events they organize.
When the impact of these events is removed, the economy grew by
1.4%, said the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO),
which calculates the figures.
The improvement, from a 0.3% increase in the first quarter, also
reflected an improvement in manufacturing, where a strong
expansion from the chemical and pharmaceuticals industry
compensated for a drop in output from other parts of industry.
"Sporting events like the Summer Olympics and the European
Championships had a huge impact on the figures of Q2 2024," said
SECO economist Felicitas Kemeny.
"But the economic impact is not that great – the effect on the
labor market is very limited. The Paris Olympics doesn't lead to
a lot of new jobs in Switzerland, while the organizations often
redistribute the money to other countries, to develop football
for example."
Quarter on quarter, Swiss economic output in the second quarter
expanded by 0.5%, in line with the government's earlier
estimate.
When the sporting events were included, output increased by
0.7%, the government said.
Despite the upturn in the second quarter, Kemeny said she still
expected growth this year to be below Switzerland's long term
average of 1.8%.
"Although this quarter has surprised slightly to the upside, the
international environment remains tough," she said. "Overall we
expect growth to be a bit slower than normal and in line with
our current forecasts of around 1.2%."
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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