Love maybe a short word, but when the Swissy bulls show it, it goes a long, long way! The intensified Swissy buying resulted in USD/CHF slumping as low as .8407 from its day open at .8496 and EUR/CHF falling as low as 1.2017 from 1.2122. It seemed that traders decided to seek safety in the Swiss franc as the Greek debt debacle continued to escalate.
No economic data will be released from Switzerland today, so events from other major economies will probably provide direction for the Swissy. Keep your ears open and your eyes peeled for any news from Greece! If default concerns arise, it could send the Swissy soaring across the board again today!
Boy was Forex Gump on the money when he said it’s time to load up on the franc! Though no economic report was released from Switzerland, the mighty franc showed muscle against its major counterparts. EUR/CHF might have steadied at 1.2106, but USD/CHF fell by another 61 pips to .8404. Boo yeah!
Maybe we’ll see more Swissy action today when Switzerland releases the ZEW economic expectations report at 9:00 am GMT. The index on expectations of investors and analysts came in at -11.5 in May, but a higher number could boost the franc higher in the charts.
Another report to keep close tabs on is the Fed’s FOMC statement later at 4:30 pm GMT. Central bank statements usually inspire volatility and the low-yielding franc could react to risk sentiment inspired by the statement.
Good luck in your trades today?
Just when USD/CHF seemed ready to break below .8350, relatively upbeat words from the Fed triggered U.S. dollar buying. Because of that, USD/CHF retreated and closed at .8391. The Swiss franc’s performance against the euro was much better as EUR/CHF closed 58 pips below its 1.2105 open price. Where to now, Swissy?
Even though Switzerland’s ZEW economic confidence index posted a huge decline for this month, the Swissy was still able to end higher against the U.S. dollar and the euro. The reading fell from -11.5 to -24.3 as investors expected weaker inflationary pressures during the month.
Switzerland is set to release its trade balance for May at 6:00 am GMT today. Their trade surplus is projected to climb from 1.44 billion CHF to 1.68 billion CHF during the period, but the Swiss franc’s recent rallies could have a negative effect on net exports. A weaker than expected figure would prove this point and possibly be bearish for the Swissy, so keep your eyes and ears peeled for the actual release!
And the franc takes home the bacon again! Due to better-than-expected trade numbers, the franc was able to get a nice lift against its counterparts. USD/CHF fell by 50 pips from its intraday high at .8390, while EUR/CHF also slipped by 83 pips to 1.1964.
With Switzerland’s trade surplus almost doubling to 3.31 billion CHF in May from its 1.44 billion CHF figure in April, who wouldn’t want to buy the franc? It seems that a strong franc is no problem for the country’s exports. Swiss watch exports alone rose by 31.6% compared to last year’s May!
Let’s see if currency bulls will still feel the love for the franc today when the SNB releases its quarterly bulletin at 9:00 am GMT. If the SNB’s assessment turns out to be moe hawkish than analysts had estimated, then we just might see the franc rise further in the charts!
Do I hear parity by year’s end? 
And the Swissy is back on track! Risk aversion pushed USD/CHF to test the .8350 support yet again, before the pair closed at .8377. Meanwhile, EUR/CHF successfully breached the 1.2000 handle as it closed at 1.1879. With Swissy pairs gapping lower over the weekend, will we see more gains from the franc?
The SNB quarterly bulletin released last Friday revealed that the central bank expects inflation to pick up in the near term. With SNB committed to maintaining price stability, this suggests that we might see an interest rate hike sooner or later. On top of that, the SNB also announced that it expects the Swiss economy to stay on track in terms of an economic recovery.
Switzerland won’t be releasing any economic data today so make sure you check out the rest of my roundup, particularly my U.S. commentary, to find out which reports could rock the markets today.
Well, that’s a first! For the first time in over a week, the Swiss franc ended lower against the dollar and the euro. While USD/CHF jumped 34 pips, EUR/CHF posted a solid 105-pip rise. Will it recover today?
It seems the Swiss franc is losing a bit of its appeal ahead of the Greek Parliament vote on austerity measures later this week. Apparently, efforts to fix Greece’s messy finances are restoring a bit of confidence in the markets. Good news for high-yielding assets, yes, but definitely bad news for safe haven currencies such as the Swissy!
If you plan on trading the Swiss franc today, you ought to keep a close eye on the UBS consumption indicator report due at 6:00 am GMT. The last time this report came out, it printed a reading of 1.59 for the month of April. If the index comes in above this, it might just help the franc pare some of its recent losses.
I guess you can’t have 'em all, can you? The Swissy may have ended the day higher against the U.S. dollar but it caved to euro strength. USD/CHF reached a low of .8276 and closed at .8322 while EUR/CHF closed at 1.1953.
Switzerland’s UBS consumption indicator posted an improvement for the month of May as it climbed from 1.57 to 1.91, a new record high. Components of the indicator showed that new car registrations and retail sales were the primary factors that pushed for a higher reading.
Today, the KOF economic barometer is due from Switzerland. The reading is expected to dip from 2.30 to 2.23 for June, suggesting that future economic activity could slow down a bit. Of course, a stronger than expected reading could provide another boost for the Swiss franc. Keep an eye out for that at 9:30 am GMT.
Risk appetite hit the Swiss franc, and boy did it hit it hard! The safe haven currency was no match to its counterparts as it was bogged down by a strong swing in risk sentiment. USD/CHF climbed 28 pips on the day, while EUR/CHF staged a 97-pip rally.
Even though the KOF economic barometer printed a reading of 2.23, which is in line with expectations, the Swiss franc took a massive beating. The franc never really stood a chance against its counterparts, not with risk sentiment working against it! After Greece had approved its austerity package, the markets grew more confident, ditching safe haven currencies like the franc for higher-yielding ones.
Will we see more of the same today? Well, it looks like it. Risk appetite is at a high, and unless the Greek Parliament disapproves the implementation procedure later today, I don’t see a reason why that should change.
Is risk appetite really back or does everybody got their beer goggles on? The franc tanked yesterday, as investors sought out higher yielding currencies. USD/CHF rose 56 pips to close at .8407, while EUR/CHF rose a whopping 153 pips, marking the 4th consecutive day that the pair closed higher.
Now that concerns about Greek debt are dying down, we may see the traders shy away from the franc as they seek higher returns. In addition, the franc’s rally may have been overdone, so this could also be a much needed correction.
For today, the SVME PMI will be available at 7:30 am GMT. The index measures industry and business expansion in Switzerland, with a score of 50 being the line-in-the-sand that separates expansion from contraction. Estimates are calling for a figure of 57.9, which would be a slight decrease from last month’s score of 59.2. In any case, I don’t expect this to be a major market mover unless it comes in drastically better or worse than expected.
Aha! It seems like the Swissy lost touch with its inner Mick Jagger on Friday as it scored losses to both the dollar and the euro. USD/CHF ended the day 81 pips higher from its opening price at .8489 while EUR/CHF closed at 1.2333 after starting the day at 1.2193.
Perhaps the pickup in risk appetite has forced the Swissy to strut the charts without much swagger. It might not also have helped that Switzerland’s manufacturing PMI for June disappointed expectations. The index printed at 53.4 when the market was only expecting a modest fall to 57.9 following the 59.2 reading we saw in May.
Today make sure you keep tabs on the retail sales report for May to help you gauge which direction the Swissy would take in today’s trading. Due at 7:15 am GMT, analysts are expecting consumer spending to have been lower during the month at 4.6% after printing a 7.5% uptick the month prior.
Also, don’t forget to get a feel of market sentiment! Remember that the currency usually rallies in times of risk aversion. Good luck!
Quiet day for the Swissy, as the pair just bounced up and down the charts but failed to make any headway in either direction. USD/CHF ultimately closed at .8484, down just 5 pips on the day.
No reports on tap from Switzerland today, but watch out as U.S. traders will be coming back from the Fourth of July weekend. We could see some strong moves as traders reestablish their positions, so be careful out there!
Data, schmata! The Swissy didn’t need economic reports to score epic wins against its counterparts in yesterday’s trading. After opening at .8485, USD/CHF dropped to end the day at .8406. Meanwhile, EUR/CHF ended the day 206 pips lower from its opening price at 1.2124.
It was all about risk aversion with talks of a possible default for Greece clouding market sentiment. And so, given that our forex calendar is still blank fore reports coming from Switzerland today, make sure you get a feel of the market’s mood to help you gauge the Swissy’s price action.
When there’s a will, there’s a way! Despite giving up some ground to the dollar during the Asian session, the Swissy was able to fight back and actually end the U.S. trading session with a small gain. By the end of the day, USD/CHF was trading at .8393, 13 pips lower from its opening price.
There weren’t any important economic data released yesterday, but we will be seeing Switzerland’s CPI at 8:15 pm GMT later. The market predicts a -0.1% figure, a slight decrease from last month’s flat reading.
Also keep tabs on market sentiment. Overall, the market seems to still be pessimistic about the global economy. If this continues today, we could see the Swissy post more gains.
With risk appetite in full swing yesterday, the franc didn’t stand a chance. USD/CHF closed 52 pips higher at .8446, while EUR/CHF erased its losses from the day before and finished at 1.2120, up 109 pips on the day.
The franc started the day off on a poor note, as CPI figures continued to show that inflation remains subdued. The CPI report printed a -0.2% figure, which was less than the forecasted 0.1%. This gives the SNB even less reason to be raising rates.
Still, the major driver of franc pairs has been risk sentiment. Whenever risk appetite picks up, the franc tends to fall, and vice versa when risk aversion hits the market. We’re living in tricky times my friends , so it’s important to stay flexible. Take note that today is NFP Friday, so it’ll be interesting to see how this report affects risk sentiment.
The Swissy strut the charts with so much swag last Friday as it ended the day 81 pips higher against the dollar at .8365. Not to mention that it gained a whopping 193 pips from the euro as EUR/CHF closed at 1.1929.
With the disappointment posted by the NFP report for June and with sovereign debt issues hitting the airwaves, it wasn’t much of a surprise that investors sought the Swissy given its “safe haven” reputation.
We don’t have ANY economic report on tap from Switzerland this week. So make sure you keep tabs on the reports of its counterparts and get a good feel of market sentiment, ayt? Remember that it usually rallies in times of risk aversion.
Score one for the Swissy! The strong case of risk aversion helped the Swissy gain a significant amount of ground versus the euro yesterday. EUR/CHF ended the U.S. trading session at 1.712, more than 200 pips lower from its Asian session opening price.
This time around, risk aversion came from debt contagion concerns. The market feared that debt problems would spread to other euro zone nations like Spain and Italy. This is worrisome since those two nations have been posting disappointing growth figures.
Nothing on Switzerland’s economic calendar today, so data from other major economies, particularly the U.S., will probably be the drivers behind the Swissy’s price action. Good luck trading today folks!
Back-to-back, baby! Sustained risk aversion in markets continued to boost the franc against its major counterparts yesterday. EUR/CHF as dragged down 96 pips to 1.1615, while USD/CHF also slipped by 45 pips to .8312 after hitting an intraday high of .8399.
The economic boards were empty in Switzerland yesterday, so traders focused on risk appetite in markets. As it turned out, possible QE3 in the U.S. and Moody’s downgrading Italy’s bonds to junk status were just too much for the currency bulls. They bought the low-yielding franc like there was no tomorrow!
Today only the PPI report at 7:15 am GMT is scheduled for release from Switzerland, and the data isn’t expected to move much from its 0.2% growth last June. You know what that means – more risk sentiment trading!
And just when everyone thought the Swiss franc couldn’t go any higher after a disappointing inflation report, the Swissy brings its A-game on and soars to new a high against the dollar. USD/CHF closed just a couple of pips above its all-time low at .8180, 132 pips lower from its opening price. Meanwhile, EUR/CHF ended the day 48 pips lower near its lows at 1.1567.
It was reported yesterday that producer prices fell for a second consecutive month in Switzerland. The June PPI report printed at -0.5% following the -0.2% reading we saw in May. Analysts were only eyeing a softer decline of 0.3%.
Luckily for the Swissy, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted that QE3 is indeed possible and euro zone’s debt woes still haven’t gone away.
With that said and given that our forex calendar is blank for reports for the Swissy today, make sure you keep tabs on what’s going on with the currency’s counterparts.
Is that profit taking I see? Why, it seems so! Yesterday, the Swissy retraced some of its gains against the dollar due to some positive data from the U.S. After marking a new all-time low at .8085 USD/CHF rose and closed the day at .8174
Switzerland’s economic calendar was barren yesterday and today won’t be any different. This means that the Swissy will probably be mostly driven by economic data coming out of other major economies, especially those from the U.S (the consumer price index at 12:30 pm GMT and the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey at 1:55 pm GMT).