Switzerland’s [B]Producer and Import Prices[/B] are set to fall at an annual pace of -2.8%, the most in decade, for the second consecutive month in April. The reading suggests continued downward pressure on consumer prices, the headline inflation gauge, after CPI slipped into negative territory for the first time in 5 years in March and continued to contract in April. Weakening domestic conditions will add to external downward pressure on price growth: a survey of economists conducted by Bloomberg suggests that the economy will shrink -1.0% this year, threatening to entrench deflation expectations. This stands to commit the mountain nation to a long-term stagnation as consumers and businesses perpetually put off spending and investment to wait for the best possible bargain. It remains to be seen if the Swiss National Bank is able to stave off this dire scenario with aggressive monetary measures including quantitative easing and currency market intervention.