According to Le Matin, economists at Swiss Life think the rise of the Swiss franc could be over and predict it will weaken to 1.22 to the euro by the end of the year. At the same time they point to risks that could send the currency in the opposite direction, such as the election in […]
Swiss National Bank agrees to pay out 1 billion francs annually
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Today, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) announced a new agreement with the Federal Department of Finance, to pay the Swiss confederation and cantons CHF 1 billion per year, as was previously the case. The deal will run from 2016 to 2020, according to an official press release. The deal […]
Switzerland’s central bank offers a glimpse behind the curtain
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The Swiss National Bank is offering a rare look into how it sets monetary policy. A video of SNB President Thomas Jordan and fellow members of the governing board shows them beginning their quarterly policy assessment discussing the state of the economy with about 30 people. According to the […]
Seven years of inaction on SNB rates day won’t end this week
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Anyone feeling let down that the European Central Bank didn’t do much last week might just want to skip the Swiss rate decision on Thursday to avoid more disappointment. While the Swiss National Bank may be infamous for some seismic policy changes in the last few years, those bombshells […]
Despite risks a more negative Swiss interest rate possible says SNB’s Maechler
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The Swiss National Bank won’t rule out another interest rate cut, though any measure must be weighed with a view to its potential side effects, Governing Board Member Andrea Maechler said. “We’re always looking into other options, if needed — we’re looking into all of them,” Maechler said at […]
SNB pledges willingness to intervene on strong franc
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Swiss National Bank Vice President Fritz Zurbruegg said the economic backdrop remains far from normal and kept alive policy makers’ ongoing threat of currency interventions to tackle the “overvalued” franc. “Under certain conditions, however, the SNB is prepared to intervene directly in the foreign exchange market,” Zurbruegg said in […]
Swiss national bank’s foreign currency holdings reach all-time high
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The Swiss National Bank’s holdings of foreign currency soared to an all-time high in November, a month that the franc depreciated roughly 4 percent against the dollar. The reserves, on which economists keep a close watch for clues to the central bank’s interventions, rose to 562.7 billion francs ($563 […]
Switzerland’s ambition for a weaker franc seen as a forlorn hope
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Currency markets just won’t cooperate with Thomas Jordan. When the Swiss National Bank president repeated a warning for buyers to steer clear of the “significantly overvalued” franc last week, the impact of his words was blunted by a European Central Bank pledge to reassess its stimulus plan. Switzerland’s currency […]
The Swiss National Bank’s growing stakes in US companies
Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. The Swiss National Bank owned more shares of Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp. in the third quarter, taking its U.S. equity portfolio to $38.95 billion. Switzerland’s central bank held 10.3 million shares in the iPhone maker on Sept. 30, according to a regulatory filing made to […]
Swiss economic news
18 September 2015 Brought to you by Investec Switzerland. Swiss National Bank says franc still overvalued The Swiss National Bank kept interest rates at record lows and signaled the recent depreciation of the franc hasn’t diminished its willingness to intervene in currency markets if needed. The central bank, led by President Thomas Jordan, left its […]
