Swiss ministers are in Washington for talks aimed at reducing the 39% tariff that US President Donald Trump has imposed on Swiss exports to the US. This is the highest tariff rate in Europe.
Swiss President Karin Keller Sutter’s initial attempts to change Trump’s mind were ignored. But a visit by business leaders on November 4 appears to have changed his mind.
A senior administration official told reporters Thursday that talks between U.S. and Swiss ministers had been “very positive” and “very focused,” adding that they were “very aware” of the trade deficit with the United States and were prepared to address it.
For months, Switzerland has been trying to lower interest rates, which has hit the country hard.
President Trump’s response to the Swiss president’s suggestion was that she was “a nice woman, but she didn’t want to listen.”
But last week a private initiative took a more unconventional approach.
Swiss industry leaders visited the White House Oval Office on November 4 with gifts including a gold Rolex watch and a specially engraved gold bar from Swiss-based gold refinery MKS.
Already this week, President Trump said negotiations were “going on to lower” tariffs a little bit. I haven’t set any numbers.
“All our plans have been carried out in the spirit of Swiss unity between the private and public sectors,” Swiss industrialists said in a statement after the meeting.
Some business figures, particularly traders of luxury goods, gold and commodities, already had contacts with Trump’s associates.
Last September, Trump appeared at the U.S. Open tennis finals held in the Rolex VIP box hosted by Jean Frédéric Dufour, the CEO of the Swiss watch company.
The president, apparently guessing what was going on, asked Dufour whether Dufour would have been there if Trump hadn’t imposed such high tariffs on Switzerland.
Last week, Dufour met Trump again, this time in the Oval Office, along with fellow business leaders including Johann Rupert of luxury goods manufacturer Richemont and Marwan Shakarchi of MKS.
These days, it’s very common for a leader heading to the Oval Office to bring a gift.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has invited Prince Charles for a lavish state visit. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz presented President Trump with a framed copy of his German grandfather’s birth certificate.
Requests to confirm the gifts to the two Swiss companies involved received “no comment” from Rolex and MKS.
But a few days after the meeting, Trump was photographed in the Oval Office holding a watch that bore a striking resemblance to a Rolex “Datejust” table clock worth tens of thousands of dollars that the company produced as a collector’s item.
White House officials confirmed that the two items were delivered to President Trump.
The President of the United States receives thousands of gifts each year, and those gifts become property of the United States, stored in the National Archives and deposited annually by the Department of State.
Eventually they were moved to the Presidential Library. Some gifts can be kept, but unless they are close relatives, the president will have to pay federal taxes.
In 1969, President Richard Nixon politely declined a gift of a Swiss Omega watch to commemorate the moon landing.
Whatever happens with Swiss futures, Trump’s stance on Switzerland appears to have softened, telling reporters he is doing something “to help Switzerland.”
Swiss Economy Minister Guy Parmelin and chief trade negotiator Helene Budliger Artieda, who visited Washington on Wednesday, were more hopeful than in previous months amid suggestions that the 39% tariff could be cut to 15%, in line with Switzerland’s neighbors in the EU.
In return, Swiss pharmaceutical giants are already negotiating commitments to build more manufacturing plants in the United States. There are also reports that Swiss International Airlines, which primarily owns Airbus, may pivot towards Boeing.
But is that enough? Swiss industry is waiting with bated breath. Tariffs are starting to take effect, and many Swiss companies have warned that they will have to lay off workers if nothing changes.
Switzerland has one more very influential person they can call on.
President Trump’s longtime friend Gianni Infantino, FIFA president and Swiss citizen, has reportedly been urged by some Swiss lawmakers to change the president’s mind.
As part of preparations for next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, Infantino visited the White House Oval Office with the trophy in August.
As the cameras rolled, he said he was the “winner” and handed the photo to Trump. The President responded, “Can I have it? It’s a beautiful piece of gold.”
Infantino also announced the new FIFA World Peace Prize, which will be announced on December 5 in Washington, DC.
All bets are off as to who that person is.
