Swiss Market Index Shrugs Off Gloomy Economic Sentiment to Close Higher

11:59 AM EST, 12/23/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The Swiss Market Index concluded Tuesday in positive territory amid thin trading volumes ahead of the Christmas break, with the blue-chip index up 0.60% at the end of the trading session. Data from UBS & CFA Society Switzerland showed that the country's economic sentiment index fell to 6.2 points in December from 12.2 points in November. Across the pond, the US real gross domestic product in the third quarter rose at an annual rate of 4.3%, following a 3.8% growth in the previous quarter, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. "A strong performance from net trade lifted GDP growth to its fastest rate since the third quarter of 2023. The key drivers remain high-income consumers and tech capex and that seems unlikely to change in 2026," ING said. "What could change that? Well, the most likely candidate would be a stock market wobble that hits the value of tech stocks hard. That would likely lead to a tightening of lending conditions which could squeeze capex and hurt those high-income households via negative wealth effects." Over to corporates, Nestlé (NESN.SW) closed the sale of its remaining 40% stake in packaged meat business Herta Foods to Casa Tarradellas for an undisclosed sum, marking the end of its joint venture with the Spanish company. The Swiss food giant's stock closed 0.26% lower. Peach Property Group (PEAN.SW) gained 1.79% at closing after announcing plans to sell 2,000 residential and commercial units in Germany from its non-strategic portfolio to an unspecified institutional investor. The purchase price of the transaction also remains confidential. The deal is expected to complete in the first half of 2026.