Swiss Franc: SNB intervention and cautious policy stance – Rabobank

FXStreet Insights Team FXStreet

Rabobank's Senior FX Strategist Jane Foley describes how the Swiss National Bank has actively countered safe haven inflows into the Swiss Franc since the Iran war, selling CHF and signalling increased willingness to intervene. With low inflation and modest growth risks, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is expected to keep FX intervention as a key tool while rate hike prospects remain finely balanced.

SNB balances FX and policy risks

"Indeed, SNB data confirms that the authorities sold CHF in Q1 this year suggesting that intervention did occur."

"It has been reported that the SNB purchased CHF3.9 bln worth of foreign currency in the first three months of this year."

"Last week SNB President Schlegel repeated the warnings that the central bank was ready to intervene in the market if needed."

"For now, we expect that the SNB’s focus will remain on emphasising that FX intervention is a policy tool with the aim of dissuading speculative buying and preventing the CHF from appreciating."

"While the risks of a SNB rate hike would increase if the ECB extends its hawkish position, tightening potential is still finely balanced given the continued relative strength of the CHF."

(This article was created with the help of an Artificial Intelligence tool and reviewed by an editor. Know more.)

Author

FXStreet Insights Team

FXStreet

The FXStreet Insights Team is a group of journalists that handpicks selected market observations published by renowned experts. The content includes notes by commercial as well as additional insights by internal and external analysts.

AUD/USD bulls regain control above 0.6950 amid USD retreat

AUD/USD regains traction and extends the previous day's bounce from the weekly low, aiming for 0.7000 in Asia on Friday. The overnight pullback in US bond yields keeps the US Dollar below an 18-month high, which in turn offers some support to the pair. Meanwhile, hawkish RBA expectations also keep the major underpinned.

USD/JPY holds gains near 158.00 after Japan's weak Household Spending data

USD/JPY clings to gains around 158.00 after data showed on Friday that Japan's Household Spending fell for the ninth straight month, undermining the Japanese Yen. Meanwhile, the US Dollar remains depressed as the overnight fall in US bond yields counters a hawkish Fed and geopolitical uncertainties, could cap any downside in the pair.

Gold remains range-bound below $4,200

Gold has given up some ground after an initial bullish attempt to reach weekly highs, returning to below the $4,200 mark per troy ounce on Friday. The US Dollar’s strong upside momentum, combined with rising US Treasury yields across the curve, seems to keep further gains in the yellow metal under scrutiny.

Week ahead: US CPI, France’s budget crisis and Q3 earnings to set the market tone

The US dollar held relatively strong this week, despite the disappointing US jobs report on October 2, which further decreased the probability of a back-to-back rate hike by the Fed at the upcoming gathering on October 28.

CFTC Report: Euro and Aussie shorts expand amid diverging signals

The week in one sentence: Euro and Australian Dollar shorts deepened in the week to October 6, while Yen longs rebuilt. In addition, Coffee buying continued, and Gold exposure remained elevated despite another price decline. Speculators turned more negative on the Euro, increasing the net exposure to around 99.3K contracts.

Has Bitcoin really escaped the macro forces it was built to fight?

Over 17 years ago, Satoshi Nakamoto designed Bitcoin (BTC) on the back of a global financial crisis as an alternative to the global monetary system outside the control of central banks, governments and traditional intermediaries. This raises a key question: has Bitcoin really become independent of the macroeconomic forces it was built to challenge?