Somebody’s not having a good Monday! The Swiss franc started the week on a poor note as it crumbled against dollar strength once again. USD/CHF climbed from the .9300 area to a high of .9350 while EUR/CHF reached a high of 1.2333. Can the franc make it out of its slump?
Switzerland’s weaker than expected SVME PMI is probably the main reason why the franc wasn’t off to a good start in this trading week. The actual figure dipped from 57.4 to 54.6 in August, lower than the estimate at 55.9. This shows that, even though the manufacturing sector still expanded for the month, growth was much weaker than expected.
Swiss GDP is up for release today and, given the recent slowdown in the Swiss economy, a weaker growth figure of 0.3% is expected for the second quarter of the year. If the actual figure comes below consensus, it could put the Swiss franc in a much deeper rut against its counterparts. Keep an eye out for the actual release at 6:45 am GMT if you’re trading franc pairs!
The better-than-expected Swiss GDP report didn’t make a dent on the franc traders’ resolve to sell the currency! Both USD/CHF and EUR/CHF showed franc weakness yesterday, you see. Did the report make any dent on price action at all?
Switzerland’s second quarter GDP came in at 0.5%, which is faster than the expected 0.3% but is still a bit slower than the previous quarter’s 0.6% growth. This is probably why USD/CHF and EUR/CHF barely reacted to the report and USD/CHF even rose minutes after the release.
We won’t be seeing any more data from Switzerland today, so it might be better if you concentrate your efforts on determining what could drive the franc’s counterparts’ price action today.
Chop, chop, chop… That’s what franc trading was all about yesterday, as USD/CHF tossed around the .9350 to .9380 area. EUR/CHF had better luck in picking a direction, as the pair climbed up to a high of 1.2367.
The lack of data from Switzerland was probably the reason why USD/CHF was mostly directionless in yesterday’s trading. As for EUR/CHF, better than expected medium-tier reports from the euro zone allowed the pair to post some gains.
There are no reports on Switzerland’s schedule for today, which could mean more choppy movement from franc pairs. If you’re trading USD/CHF, you might want to keep tabs on U.S. data due today (ADP employment change and ISM non-manufacturing PMI), as strong results could push the pair up. If you’re playing EUR/CHF, don’t forget that the ECB is set to make its monetary policy statement today and that this could result to additional volatility.
The franc was dropped against the euro and the dollar like it was hot in yesterday’s trading. Both USD/CHF and EUR/CHF showed franc weakness despite the lack of Swiss-related reports. What the heck happened?!
Blame it on risk appetite! Better-than-expected reports from both the U.S. and the euro zone inspired risk-taking from the investors, which prompted a selloff of low-yielding currencies like the franc.
Only the Swiss foreign currency reserves at 7:00 am GMT and the CPI report at 7:15 am GMT are scheduled for release today, so you might want to pay attention to other major reports on tap this NFP Friday. The franc doesn’t usually move a lot compared to other major currencies, but keep an eye out in case we see a risk on-risk off scenario!
Retracement or reversal? The Swiss franc had a chance to break its losing streak to the Greenback on Friday, with USD/CHF falling from a high of .9457 to a low of .9346. Against the euro, the franc also had a good run, as EUR/CHF dipped to a low of 1.2325.
It’s surprising how the franc managed to end Friday on a positive note since data from Switzerland was actually weaker than expected. Swiss CPI had a 0.1% decline instead of the estimated flat reading. This follows the 0.4% drop reported in the previous month, leading some market watchers to worry that Switzerland could undergo deflation.
Fortunately for the franc, both the U.S. and the euro zone are facing economic problems themselves! The euro continued to sell off against its counterparts on Friday when Germany reported bleak trade balance and industrial production figures while the Greenback plummeted after the U.S. printed a weak NFP reading.
Switzerland is set to report is jobless rate and retail sales figures in today’s London session. The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 3.2% while retail sales could could pick up from an annual pace of 2.3% to 3.2% in July. Better than expected figures could extend the franc’s rally while lower than expected readings could force it to return its recent gains.
There are no other major reports due from Switzerland for the rest of the week, so y’all better keep tabs on market sentiment if you’re trading franc pairs!
Weaker-than-expected data? Eh. Once again, the franc traded on its counterparts’ price action even though Switzerland had released a couple of economic reports yesterday. Were the reports so insignificant then?
Not really. Data from Switzerland showed the country’s unemployment rate remaining at 3.2% for the month of August. Meanwhile, annualized retail sales for July only grew by 0.8%, which is a disappointment for those who had expected a 3.2% growth.
Good thing that the franc pairs’ price action moved to the beat of the franc’s counterparts! USD/CHF fell on overall dollar aversion while EUR/CHF also ended the day slightly in the red as political uncertainty in Italy limited the demand for the common currency.
There isn’t any major report scheduled from Switzerland today, so you might want to keep a close eye on other major economies like the U.S. and the euro zone for clues on how the franc would trade today!
The Swiss franc was down in the dumps yesterday, as it lost ground to the U.S. dollar and the euro. USD/CHF climbed to a high of .9366 while EUR/CHF jumped to the 1.2400 area. Will the franc have a chance to recover today?
There were no reports released from Switzerland yesterday, but it appears that the franc lost ground when risk appetite improved and lifted the higher-yielding currencies. For today, Switzerland’s economic schedule is still blank, which suggests that franc trading could depend on sentiment once again.
With that, stay tuned for any updates on the conflict in Syria and the pursuit of a diplomatic solution by Obama and other world leaders. A lower likelihood of a military strike could keep risk appetite in the markets, which might mean more rallies among higher-yielders.
The franc bulls got a piece of the rallies yesterday when both USD/CHF and EUR/CHF fell by around 20 to 40 pips. USD/CHF closed at .9301 while EUR/CHF fell 33 pips from its intraday high. Woohoo!
Once again the franc traded on its counterparts’ price action. It worked in favor of Switzerland’s currency though, as an overall dollar weakness and growth concerns in the euro zone made the franc more attractive than the dollar and the euro.
Switzerland won’t be releasing any reports again today. You know where to look if you’re planning on trading the franc pairs!
“Slow and steady wins the race” must’ve been the franc’s mantra yesterday, as the Swiss currency posted small gains against the dollar and the euro. USD/CHF sank to a low of .9273 before closing at .9307 while EUR/CHF dipped close to the 1.2350 minor psychological level.
There were no reports released from Switzerland yesterday, yet the franc was able to take advantage of euro and dollar weakness. As it turns out, Draghi expressed skepticism about the euro zone’s recovery in his testimony yesterday while downbeat expectations for the U.S. retail sales release today weighed on the U.S. dollar.
Speaking of U.S. retail sales, do keep tabs on this release if you’re trading USD/CHF today! Word through the forex grapevine is that a downside surprise could be in the cards, considering how the U.S. has been printing bleak hiring figures for the past couple of months.
Who’s the boss now? The franc dominated its major counterparts once again thanks to weak reports from the other major economies. EUR/CHF dropped by 12 pips and USD/CHF sustained a 13-pip dip.
Aside from grim prospects in the euro zone and a weaker-than-expected retail sales data from the U.S., it also helped the franc that Switzerland’s PPI report last Friday printed a 0.2% gain as expected. If you remember, it showed zero growth in the previous month.
We won’t see any major data from Roger Federer’s home land until the second half of the week when it will print its ZEW economic expectations on Wednesday at 9:00 am GMT and the trade balance and the big SNB monetary policy decision on Thursday at 6:00 am and 7:30 am GMT respectively.
So much for starting the week strong! The franc erased most of its gains to the dollar on Monday, as USD/CHF dipped to a low of .9233 then pulled up to the .9275 area. Will the Swiss currency be able to redeem itself today?
There were absolutely no reports released from Switzerland yesterday, as USD/CHF was mostly driven by market sentiment and U.S. data. At first, Summers’ withdrawal from the Fed head race allowed USD/CHF to edge lower but risk aversion and an unwinding of short dollar positions ahead of this week’s FOMC statement triggered a quick rally for the pair.
Switzerland’s economic agenda is still empty for today so expect USD/CHF to be sensitive to U.S. data once again.
The franc bulls partied in the streets yesterday as the low-yielding currency gained against the dollar, euro, and even the yen. What the heck brought that on?!
Switzerland didn’t release any economic data yesterday, so the move could be from positioning ahead of the FOMC statement. Since other low-yielding favorites like the Greenback and then yen will most likely be volatile during the report, some traders might have sided with the relatively stable franc.
Only Switzerland’s ZEW economic expectations at 9:00 am GMT is scheduled for today. This means that you should pay more attention to risk appetite ahead of the big reports coming up today as it could have more impact on the franc’s price action.
Ain’t no support level too strong for USD/CHF to break! The pair successfully broke below the .9200 major psychological handle in yesterday’s NY session, reaching a low of .9132 and closing at .9134. How low can USD/CHF go?
Switzerland’s ZEW economic expectations report printed an improvement from 7.2 to 16.3 for August, reflecting higher optimism among institutional investors and analysts. This tends to be positive for the economy, as a stronger outlook could lead to more money flows and growth later on.
While the ZEW report provided support for the franc, what really triggered USD/CHF’s tumble was the disappointing FOMC statement, which showed that the Fed decided against tapering this time. In addition, lower U.S. growth forecasts from the Fed also pushed the dollar lower.
It will be the SNB’s turn to make its monetary policy announcement today at 8:30 am GMT. No interest rate changes are expected, but it will be interesting to see if SNB head Jordan will also adopt forward guidance and give market watchers clues on their future monetary policy plans. Upbeat remarks could push USD/CHF deeper below the .9200 handle while downbeat comments could push it back above that level. Stay on your toes!
Who’s the Pied Piper now? Yesterday the franc finally traded on Switzerland’s data instead of its counterparts’ price action. USD/CHF slipped by 27 pips while EUR/CHF also sustained a 20-pip loss. What the heck brought that on?!
Yesterday we saw a data dump from Switzerland. It’s trade balance report showed a 1.85 billion CHF surplus for the month of August when analysts had been expecting a 2.74 billion CHF figure. The SNB had also decided to keep its interest rates steady at less than 0.25% and defend the 1.0200 floor on EUR/CHF.
What got the investors’ attention though, was that the SNB had Upgraded its growth forecasts. The central bank now expects their economy to grow by 1.5% to 2.0% in 2013 instead of its earlier calls for a 1.0% to 1.5% growth.
Let’s see if the franc bulls continue to be on their game today. No economic report is scheduled for release, so we’ll most likely see the franc trade on its counterparts’ price action once again. Keep close tabs on this one, will ya?
Ain’t no taper talk gonna crush the franc! Unlike most of the major currencies that crumbled under dollar strength on Friday, the Swiss franc managed to hold its ground as USD/CHF consolidated above the .9100 major psychological support.
There were no reports released from Switzerland on Friday, as the Swissy was still enjoying the support from the upbeat SNB statement earlier in the week. For today, SNB Chairman Thomas Jordan’s speech should shed more light on why the central bank recently upgraded its growth forecasts for the Swiss economy. Do watch out for his testimony around 4:15 pm GMT, as upbeat remarks could provide another boost for the franc.
Switzerland has a few major reports lined up for the rest of the week. These are the UBS consumption indicator due on Wednesday, SNB quarterly bulletin set for release on Thursday, and the KOF economic barometer due on Friday. Better than expected data could allow USD/CHF to fall further so watch out for those releases when trading the pair!
The franc had a mixed trading day yesterday as it traded on its counterparts’ price action. USD/CHF rose by 28 pips on overall dollar strength, while EUR/CHF closed 44 pips lower than its intraday high on mixed euro zone data.
Switzerland won’t be releasing any economic report today, so you might want to keep close tabs on any news that might affect the demand for low-yielding currencies like the franc.
Guess who’s still stuck in its range? Yep, it’s USD/CHF! The pair continued to consolidate above the .9100 major psychological support level, as there was no catalyst for a strong breakout. Will we see one today?
The lack of major data from Switzerland kept USD/CHF in tight consolidation yesterday while reports from the U.S. simply came in line with consensus.
Today might be a different story though, as Switzerland is set to print its UBS consumption indicator at 7:00 am GMT. This report has been printing declines for the past three months and might show another drop for August. However, if the actual reading comes in higher than July’s 1.41 figure, USD/CHF might have a shot at breaking lower.
Without any major news report from Switzerland, the franc was left to the mercy of market sentiment. USD/CHF ended the day with losses while EUR/CHF ticked 4 pips higher than its open price.
Yesterday we saw Switzerland’s UBS consumption indicator show a reading of 1.32 for the month of August, which a bit lower than July’s 1.41 reading. It didn’t matter to the franc bulls and bears though, as they were too caught up on the overall dollar weakness as well as the positive German report from the euro to pay attention.
Let’s see if the SNB’s quarterly bulletin at 1:00 pm GMT will get any attention. The report doesn’t usually have a lasting impact on the franc’s price action, but watch out for this one in case there are any game changers!
Zzz… Thursday was such a snoozer for USD/CHF since the pair simply moved sideways along the .9100 major psychological level. In fact, the pair has been consolidating for most of the week! Are there any catalysts for a breakout in either direction today?
The lack of data from Switzerland explains why USD/CHF is having a pretty lazy trading week. The pair barely even reacted to weaker than expected U.S. data yesterday!
Today might be a different story as the U.S. has more event risks lined up, starting from the release of the core PCE price index, personal spending and income data, and preliminary UoM consumer sentiment figure. Don’t forget that some FOMC members are scheduled to give speeches and probably rock the dollar pairs’ socks in today’s New York session. Be careful out there!
Omnomnom… The franc bulls feasted in the charts last Friday when concerns for both the U.S. and euro zone economies weighed on USD/CHF and EUR/CHF. Will we see a repeat this week?
Switzerland’s KOF economic barometer might have printed in the franc’s favor, but you gotta admit that political concerns in the U.S. and the euro zone might have had a bigger impact on the franc pairs than Switzerland’s report.
No report scheduled from Roger Federer’s home land today, so keep an eye out for news that could possibly influence risk appetite!