Customs duties: an elected official encourages the Swiss to boycott American products

The 39% customs duties imposed on Switzerland by the United States have shown red to the national retreatment councilor (C/BE), which calls for choosing alternatives to American products. “I will radically rethink my purchasing decisions. Perhaps the mass of Swiss consumers can trigger a reaction, “he said in a message on Thursday on the social network X … himself completely American. He specifies in the “Schweiz Am Wochenende” this Saturday that, for example, “I am addicted to the iPhone, but the next time I buy a phone, I will look for another brand”.

He did not invent the powder. After the first customs duties announcements, boycott calls had been launched here and there around the world. Since the final decisions, some have been found in particular on the side of India, a country struck by 50% customs duties. The country where a boycott has been largely followed is Canada, still in the context of trade war. But on the Internet, citizens around the world who call for boycotting the United States to do so because of the American support in Israel rather than for customs decisions.

As the German newspaper recalls on Saturday, “Galaxus” had surveyed its customers on the possibility of a boycott. “In May, more than 60% wanted to bet on European products in reaction to American punitive customs rights,” noted the company. A month later, she had analyzed her sales. The share of the products sold which was of the American brand had fell 18.3% to … 17.5%. “Words, nothing but words,” said “Galaxus”.

Switzerland is a very small country and even if a boycott was followed on a large scale, it is likely that it would not shake Donald Trump. Especially since, as “Galaxus” noted, what is American? In its analysis, the company had taken into account the headquarters of brands. Give up Apple or Nike products, okay, but they are of course not manufactured in the United States. Boycotting a country in a globalized economy is not easy.