Swiss equities remained in negative territory on Tuesday, with the Swiss Market Index joining a downbeat closing in Europe at 0.80% in the red. Swiss pharmaceutical manufacturer Lonza Group lost 0.59% following its announcement of a long-term extension of its antibody-drug conjugates manufacturing partnership agreement with an unnamed biopharmaceutical company.
The deal includes the construction of a new bioconjugation suite in Visp, Switzerland, and Lonza providing commercial-scale manufacturing services for monoclonal antibodies for a new ADC therapy. Also in the red, Logitech International plunged 6.49% despite logging sales and EPS growth in its fiscal second quarter ended September. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund released its latest World Economic Outlook report, noting "stable yet underwhelming" economic growth across the globe. "Despite the good news on inflation, downside risks are increasing and now dominate the outlook.
An escalation in regional conflicts, especially in the Middle East, could pose serious risks for commodity markets. Shifts toward undesirable trade and industrial policies can significantly lower output relative to our baseline forecast. Monetary policy could remain too tight for too long, and global financial conditions could tighten abruptly," IMF Director of Research Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas wrote. For Switzerland, the IMF expects the economy to expand 1.3% in 2024 and 2025 with consumer price growth also seen to slow further..