Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} The Swiss government is the latest to revise its economic forecast downwards in the light of the global financial crisis, predicting a 2.2 percent decline in GDP this year. The Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) had previously forecast a 0.8 percent drop in gross domestic product. SECO said there would be a slight recovery in 2010, unless Europe and the US saw a "further downturn". "The global economic outlook, which was already gloomy at the end of last year, has worsened sharply since the beginning of 2009," SECO said. The downbeat economic environment would result in further job losses, it added, with the unemployment rate, which stood at 3.4 percent in February, climbing to 3.8 percent in 2009 and 5.2 percent in 2010. The forecast comes days after SwitzerlandÔÇöthe world's largest offshore financial centreÔÇöagreed to accept concessions on bank secrecy. Earlier this week, Switzerland said that in line with OECD rules, it would now respond to overseas requests for information in cases of suspected tax evasion, and not just tax fraud. Before the announcement, Switzerland had risked being added to the OECD's global blacklist of uncooperative tax havens. Separately, one of the country's most famous chocolate makers, Lindt, said it would miss its growth targets for the year as customers moved away from its premium chocolates. *┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á *┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á *