Swiss voters expect pain from America’s new border taxes but do not want Bern to blink. In a YouGov Switzerland poll, two-thirds (66%) say the 39% tariff on Swiss exports to the United States—introduced on 7 August 2025—will significantly harm the economy. Only 5% foresee little or no impact.
Despite that, just a quarter (25%) favour making concessions to Washington to ease the duties. A clear majority (65%) think Switzerland should resist pressure even if the 39% levy stays. Half of respondents say the country ought to rely more on domestic products, accepting higher prices at home if necessary.
Promising more Swiss corporate investment in America finds little favour: 41% oppose such a pledge; 15% support it. Slightly over half (52%) judge that the episode argues for closer co-operation with the European Union.
Party lines are muted on how to respond to the American tariffs. The sharper split concerns Europe: backers of the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP) are notably sceptical—only 27% support deeper EU ties and 43% oppose them, yielding an average backing of 4.0 on a 0–10 scale. Socialist Party supporters are the most enthusiastic, scoring 8.1 on the same scale.
YouGov surveyed 1,260 adults in Switzerland online between August 5th and 11th 2025. Responses were quota-controlled by age, gender and language region and weighted accordingly. Results are representative of residents aged 18–79.
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