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The Switzerland market closed modestly lower on Friday after a choppy session, as investors largely chose to stay on the sidelines or refrained from significant moves amid rising fears of a global trade war.<\/p>\n
A report showing an improvement in Switzerland’s leading indicator helped limit market’s downside.<\/p>\n
The benchmark SMI ended down 26.80 points or 0.21% at 12,840.43. The index, which advanced to 12,910.27 after a sluggish start, dropped to a low of 12,794.20 in late afternoon trade before paring some losses.<\/p>\n
Swisscom ended nearly 4% down. ABB closed lower by about 2.7%. SIG Group, VAT Group, Geberit, Logitech International, Swatch Group, Partners Group, Julius Baer and UBS Group ended down 1.3 to 2.1%.<\/p>\n
Holcim, Sika and Richemont also ended notably lower. <\/p>\n
Sandoz Group climbed nearly 1.5%. Givaudan, Roche, Nestle, Lindt & Spruengli, Sonova and SGS gained 0.4 to 0.9%.<\/p>\n
A measure signaling future turning points in the Swiss economy<\/span> strengthened in March to the highest level in seven months, indicating that the outlook for the economy remains robust, the results of a survey by the KOF Swiss Economic Institute showed.<\/p>\n The economic barometer rose to 103.9 in March from an upwardly revised 102.6 in February.<\/p>\n “It continues to remain above its medium-term average since the beginning of the year,” the KOF said. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Market Analysis<\/p>\n<\/div>\n