In any economic analysis, regions or municipalities should not be regarded as isolated spatial units, but rather as highly interrelated small open economies. These spatial interrelations must be considered also when the aim is to forecast economic variables. For example, policy makers need...

We study the demand for Swiss banknotes over the period from 1956 to 2015 and present stylized facts on different banknote denominations since the inception of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) in 1907. Employing the so-called seasonal method, we focus on the demand for banknotes used as a store of...

The term urban sprawl is often used to describe apparent inefficiencies of spatial development, including disproportionate growth of urban areas and excessive leapfrog development. In Switzerland, where open space is a scare resource, sprawl takes place all over the country. It goes at the...

Spatial and transport planners, authorities, real estate developers, investors, re-locating residents and businesses have different questions related to space and transport. These questions may concern specific land parcels, or cover a much larger area such as a city, a region, or even a whole...

The effects on employment of the recent economic crisis have become evident and persistent in many OECD countries, exacerbating on the one hand the demand for more flexibility by the firms; on the other the need to ensure workers security. 'Flexicurity', an institutional frame implementing a...

The identification of strategic interactions among local governments is typically plagued by endogeneity problems. This paper proposes a quasi-experimental strategy to identify independent personal income tax setting by Swiss municipalities making use of the multi-tier federal system. State...

Start-up activities are considered to be important for regional economic development which varies considerably between regions. As new firm formation and growth is strongly influenced by regional conditions, we analyse the role of regional conditions and their impact on start-up activities. In...