In early 1996, the new Cartel Law came into effect, introducing the presumption that horizontal agreements setting prices, production volume, or territorial distribution diminish effective competition and are therefore unlawful. Over time, the effect of this law should be to improve competition in the domestic economy. A separate law makes less extensive guarantees at the cantonal and community levels. As a net international creditor, debt management policies are not relevant to Switzerland. Import licenses for many agricultural products are subject to tariff-rate quotas and tied to an obligation for importers to take a certain percentage of domestic production.
Tariffs remain quite high for most agricultural products that are also produced in Switzerland.
The Swiss services sector features no significant barriers to U.S. exports. Foreign insurers wishing to do business in Switzerland are required to establish a subsidiary or a branch here. Foreign insurers may offer only those types of insurance for which they are licensed in their home countries. Until recently, the most serious barriers to U.S. exports existed in the area of telecommunications. Swiss authorities blocked entry early in 1998 of a shipment of corn gluten meal because it contained meal from corn varieties not yet approved in Switzerland.