The Swiss blue-chip SMI was seen opening 0.4 percent higher at 8,450 points on Thursday, according to premarket indications by bank Julius Baer .
Here are some of the main factors that may affect Swiss stocks:
CREDIT SUISSE
Lower refinancing costs, cost cuts and shuttering a unit where it had parked underperforming assets will help Swiss bank Credit Suisse reach boost its return on tangible equity (ROTE) to 10-11 percent in 2019, Chairman Urs Rohner said in an interview with the Neue Zuercher Zeitung that was published on Saturday.
The groups's CEO in Saudi Arabia is also leaving next year, media reported.
UBS
New York state attorney general announced on Friday a $68 million multistate settlement with UBS AG for artificially manipulating interest rates.
COMPANY STATEMENTS
Strauman said it and Nobel Biocare had agreed to settle a patent dispute, with Nobel Biocare agreeing to dismiss a pending court action.
Implenia said it won an order for central stops on an urban railway project in Munich.
Alpine Select said it is buying back shares as part of of a capital decrease.
Cosmo Pharmaceuticals said it is in the process of filing a new appeal with the US Food and Drug Administration over its product Methylene Blue MMX, after the FDA rejected an initial appeal
Gurit disclosed the closing of the divestment of all shares in the Company's PVC production site in Qingdao, China
ALSO said it submitted a tender offer for ABC Data S.A., a Polish IT equipment and consumer electronics distribution company
CEVA Logistics said that Gianclaudio Neri was appointed managing director of its Italy cluster
WISeKey said it had executed an agreement to sell the Quovadis SSL/TLS, PKI technology business for US$45 million to DigiCert
Orascom Development Holding AG said it completed stake sale in Royal Azur Hotel, Club Azur Hotel, and a land plot in the Makadi destination with a higher cash proceeds of c. CHF 22.5 million.
ECONOMY
Credit Suisse investor sentiment for December due at 0900 GMT.