Mixed Swiss data garnered the Swiss franc a mixed scorecard in yesterday’s trading. USD/CHF closed yesterday’s trading 19 pips above its opening price at .9033. However, it was able to maintain its swagger against the euro, ending the day with a 3-pip win at 1.2039.
The retail sales report for February came in much lower than expected at 0.8%. Analysts had their hopes up for the report to print at 3.2% following January’s 4.7% reading.
On the other hand, the SVME PMI clocked in at 51.1 for March which indicates that purchasing managers expect industry activity to expand. This is the first time in three months that the report indicated an expansion. To make it even better, it also beat expectations which was for a 49.5 reading!
Our forex calendar is blank for reports from Switzerland today which means that the franc’s fate on the charts will probably be determined by market sentiment. So be on your toes, ayt?
The Swissy was unable to hold its ground yesterday as dollar strength consumed the market. USD/CHF, which began the day at .9033, found itself at .9099 by the end of the U.S. trading session.
As I have mentioned in my other reports, dollar strength was the result of the surprise revelations in the FOMC meeting minutes. The minutes showed that quantitative easing will only come if the U.S. economy deteriorates or if inflation seemed unlike to remain below the Fed’s target. This was quite the opposite of what the market had been expecting for the past two months.
Switzerland doesn’t have any economic reports of interest today so pay attention instead to events happening in other major economies. The European Central Bank (ECB) interest rate statement will be one of the big ones today which could have an indirect effect on the Swiss franc’s price action. Be careful!
The Swiss franc had a mixed performance last week as it fell against the U.S. dollar but edged higher against the euro. USD/CHF ended the week near the .9200 handle while EUR/CHF dipped to the 1.2000 mark before bouncing right back up. Will the Swissy find a clearer direction this week?
Swiss banks are on a holiday today, which means that there aren’t any reports scheduled just yet. On Tuesday, Switzerland will release its jobless rate which could stay steady at 3.1%. Be mindful that an increase in joblessness could push the Swiss franc lower against its counterparts, so keep an eye out for the actual release at 6:45 am GMT.
That’s pretty much it for Swiss releases this week! Make sure you check out my U.S. economic commentary as well as my euro zone commentary if you’re planning to trade USD/CHF or EUR/CHF!
It seems that Swiss bankers weren’t the only ones on holiday yesterday. Judging by USD/CHF and EUR/CHF price action, the Swissy was enjoying an extended vacation as well! After a full day of trading, USD/CHF only moved 1 pip up to .9168 while EUR/CHF crawled 8 pips up to 1.2022.
After bouncing off the 1.2000 handle late last week, EUR/CHF seems to have recovered slightly. The question is, will buyers pick up their pace later in the day as Swiss traders flow back into the markets? Remember, previous attempts at crossing the 1.2000 handle were met with violent rejections in the past. Things could get interesting for this pair, so keep an eye on it!
As for economic data, we’ve got the Swiss unemployment rate due at 5:45 am GMT. Look for it to remain steady at a lowly 3.1%.
Consolidation is the name of the game for USD/CHF! Despite the strong safe-haven rallies we saw yesterday, the Swissy managed to hold its ground against the Greenback and move sideways around the .9200 handle. EUR/CHF, on the other hand, struggled to keep its head above the 1.2010 mark.
Switzerland’s jobless rate came in as expected at 3.1% for March and barely did anything to push the Swiss franc in any direction. There aren’t any reports due from Switzerland for today so the Swissy pairs could be in for more consolidation, unless risk sentiment is strong enough to push USD/CHF or EUR/CHF out of their current ranges. Stay on your toes!
The Swissy flirted with danger but it was ultimately rejected! Ouch! Methinks it needs tips from our resident ladies man, Big Pippin! EUR/CHF came close to touching the 1.2000 handle, reaching an intraday low of 1.2007. But the market headed north in the New York session, forcing the pair to turn away and finish the day at 1.2025.
With the pair still hanging right above the minimum acceptable exchange rate that the Swiss National Bank set at 1.2000, there has been a lot of interest in EUR/CHF in recent days. Rumors have been going around about a possible intervention from the central bank, though the pair still hasn’t shied away from the said critical level. It might be best to be on the lookout for new developments on this pair, as things could get interesting very soon.
It looks like you’re gonna have to look elsewhere if you plan on trading the news with the Swissy today, because Switzerland won’t be publishing any reports. The U.S. has some heavy hitters lined up, so you might want to take a look at my USD commentary in case you’ve got your eyes on USD/CHF today.
Thanks to overall dollar weakness, the franc was able to edge ahead in yesterday’s trading matches. USD/CHF finished at .9111, 64 pips below its opening price.
Seeing as how EUR/CHF is still hanging around the 1.2000 handle, I’d be a little cautious trading CHF pairs. You never know when the SNB will enter the market with guns a-blazin’!
The market environment sided with Swissy bears last Friday as the Swiss currency sold off against its two major counterparts. A broad-based dollar rally saw USD/CHF climb 88 pips to close at .9199. Meanwhile EUR/CHF gave the SNB a bit of relief as it inched up 13 pips to greet the weekend at 1.2029.
We haven’t had news from Switzerland in a while, but the Swissy remains a must-watch currency. Why? Because EUR/CHF is still dangerously close to the SNB’s “minimum acceptable exchange rate” at 1.2000! In a statement made by SNB interim head honcho Thomas Jordan, the central bank made it clear that its policies are unchanged.
After EUR/CHF tested and dipped below 1.2000 a couple weeks ago, Jordan stated that the SNB will defend 1.2000 with all its might and that the central bank is still prepared to “buy foreign currency in unlimited quantities for this purpose!” Talk about standing your ground! No wonder the markets have been hesitant to retest 1.2000!
In any case, if you’re planning to trade Swiss news this week, it looks like you’ll only have two opportunities to do so.
Your first chance will come at 7:15 am GMT today, as the Swiss PPI report comes out. Look for it to print a 0.5% increase, following February’s 0.8% uptick.
After that, you’ll have to wait until 9:00 am GMT on Wednesday to take a look at the ZEW economic expectations report. The last time this bad boy came out, it printed a reading of 0.0. Should March’s reading fall into negative territory, it could result in further Swissy weakness, so do keep tabs on this report.
Just like the other European currencies, the Swiss franc gained versus the dollar, but not before experiencing some rough sailing earlier in the day. USD/CHF hit a high at .9252 before tumbling down the charts to finish at .9148, down exactly 50 pips below its opening price.
The Swiss franc benefited late in the day as the dollar sold off as we saw a risk rally take place due to better-than-expected U.S. retail sales figures. This helped the franc edge higher versus the dollar.
Still nothing on tap from Switzerland today, so I suggest you check out my other commentaries for more news and potential market movers. Good luck homies!
Support at the .9150 minor psychological handle just seemed too darn strong for franc bulls in yesterday’s trading. USD/CHF pretty much traded around the level, ending the day 3 pips above its opening price at .9152.
I have to admit though, the Swiss franc’s price action was not surprising. After all, we didn’t have any economic report from Switzerland.
However, today might be a tad different with the Swiss ZEW Economic Expectations report due at 9:00 am GMT. A reading higher than February’s 0.0 figure will probably be bullish for the currency as it would imply optimism among analysts. Watch out!
Nothing much happened on franc pairs yesterday, as USD/CHF remained within range while EUR/CHF is still straight up chillin’ just above the 1.2000 handle. Will we see more of the same today?
The big news from Switzerland yesterday was that interim name tag on Thomas Jordan’s suit was dropped and he is now officially the president of the SNB. Congratulations Mr. Jordan!
Of course, in his first speech as the official president of the central bank, Jordan reiterated the SNB’s commitment to defending the 1.2000 floor on EUR/CHF. No surprises here and I didn’t expect anything less from him. For now, it’ll be interesting to see whether the markets test this commitment and try to break floor.
The Swiss franc continued to range like a Range Rover, trading against the dollar yesterday. USD/CHF spiked up to .9196 at the wake of the release of Spain’s bond auction results. It then quickly traded lower and ended the day near this week’s lows at .9152.
Given that we don’t have any top-tier data from both Switzerland and the U.S. due today, we may just see a repeat of yesterday’s price action. But that’s just my two cents. Keep an ear out for updates about the sovereign debt crisis that could spark a break out on the pair!
In the game of currencies, you either win or lose. Fortunately, the Swissy was of the winning camp. The currency managed to stage a nice rally last Friday, closing the day 56 pips higher versus the Greenback.
Just like Friday, no major data scheduled for release today. Tomorrow, however, we’ll see the country’s trade balance. The report is set to come out at 6:00 am GMT, and is slated to show a 1.99 billion CHF surplus. Last month, the surplus was at 2.68 billion CHF.
The G7 meetings will also begin tomorrow, which could add to the overall volatility in the foreign exchange market.
Ooops! It seems that the Swiss franc let pips slip off its hands yesterday. It pared some of its wins from Friday against the dollar as USD/CHF closed 25 pips above its opening price at .9139.
Rising bond yields, political troubles, and disappointing economic data from the euro zone took their toll on the franc. Remember that because of Switzerland’s close proximity to the region, it is also vulnerable to the bears’ attacks whenever bad news arise from Europe.
But don’t worry! If today’s trade and consumer confidence reports come in better than expected, we could see the Swiss franc hustle some muscle.
Due at 6:00 am GMT, market participants are expecting to see that exports outpaced imports by 2.59 billion CHF in March. Along with that, the UBS Consumption indicator will also be released. A figure better than February’s reading of 0.87 will probably be bullish for the franc as it would indicate that consumers are spending more.
Despite the country’s trade balance failing to meet expectation, the Swissy was still able to rally slightly yesterday. USD/CHF, which had begun the day at .9139, closed the day 28 pips lower at .9111.
The trade balance report showed a 1.69 billion CHF surplus. This was lower than the 2.59 billion CHF surplus initially expected and the month prior’s 2.61 billion CHF surplus. In other news, the UBS consumption indicator showed some promising results. It came in with a reading of 1.22, higher than last month’s .90. This indicates that a possible consumption boom could happen.
The Swiss economic calendar will be dead today as no major news report is scheduled to be published. Do watch out for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision though! It normally has an indirect but strong impact on the Swissy’s price action.
With no economic data from Switzerland, the franc traded at the mercy of its counterparts. EUR/CHF kept chillin’ like ice cream fillin’, but a broad dollar weakness pushed USD/CHF down by 33 pips to .9089.
No economic report was released from Switzerland, but mixed signals from the Fed’s FOMC statement dragged the Greenback lower against its fellow low-yielding counterpart.
Economic boards in Switzerland will be empty again today, but remain at the edge of your seats in case there’s a news report that changes risk sentiment in markets, aight?
The Swissy was able to come out victorious in yesterday’s trading session again thanks to left over optimism from the FOMC statement. USD/CHF closed the U.S. trading session at .9089, down from its opening price at .9112.
As I mentioned in my U.S. roundup, the FOMC made some upward revisions to their growth outlook and lowered their unemployment forecast. This helped risk sentiment improve, much to the dismay of the dollar bulls.
No data was released from Switzerland yesterday and today’s economic cupboard will be pretty light again since only the KOF economic barometer is scheduled to publish. It’ll come out at 7:00 am GMT and is expected to show a reading of 0.26. Last month’s reading was at 0.08.
Not even the franc missed the currency lovin’ last Friday! Thanks to positive Swiss data, the franc was able to score some pips against the euro and the dollar with USD/CHF falling from its .9134 intraday high and ending the day back near its open price at .9079.
Last Friday Switzerland’s KOF economic barometer, one of the more closely watched leading indicators from the country, clocked in a 0.40 index reading in April. This is not only better than the expected 0.26 reading, but is also a big jump from the 0.09 figure we saw in March.
We’ll probably see more action on Wednesday when Switzerland comes back from its Labor Day holiday and prints its retail sales data at 8:15 am GMT and its SVME PMI report at 8:30 am GMT. Both reports tend to have a significant impact on franc pairs, so make sure you’re around when they’re released!
Yawn! With no economic data out from Switzerland, USD/CHF and EUR/CHF stayed on their tight for most of the day. USD/CHF ended the day right at its open price at .9077, whie EUR/CHF inched 2 pips higher at 1.2015. Talk about not seeing some action!
Switzerland is out on a bank holiday as the country celebrates Labor Day, but keep your eyes peeled for any big report that might shift risk sentiment, aight?
Switzerland was on a bank holiday yesterday, so price action of franc pairs was even more subdued than the usual. USD/CHF ended the day with another doji, while EUR/CHF crept up by 2 pips to 1.2017. At this rate it would be more interesting to watch the Nyan cat video all day!
Will Swiss traders come back from their Labor Day holiday with a vengeance today? At 8:15 am GMT we’ll see Switzerland’s retail sales data, which will be closely followed by the the SVME PMI report at 8:30 am GMT.
Not only do these reports usually inspire volatility in franc pairs, but both are also expected to print higher than their previous figures. Let’s see if we’ll see more action today!