USD/CHF clings to modest daily gains near 0.9730

Broad USD strength helps USD/CHF push higher for second straight day.
US Dollar Index erases pre-New Year losses, stays above 97.
Focus stays on US-Iran conflict ahead of ISM PMI data and FOMC minutes.

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

The USD/CHF pair registered modest daily gains on Thursday and closed above the 0.9700 mark. With the greenback preserving its strength on Friday, the pair edged higher and was last seen trading at 0.9728, adding 0.15% on a daily basis.

CHF struggles to capitalize on risk-aversion

After the US killed Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in a drone attack at the Baghdad International Airport, escalating tensions in the Middle East and heightened risks over a possible retaliation by Iran weighs on the market sentiment on Friday. Although the CHF usually finds demand as a safe-haven when markets turn risk-averse, investors seem to be focusing on gold and the JPY.

Additionally, the USD's upbeat performance on Friday helps the pair stay afloat in the positive territory. The US Dollar Index, which rose 0.37% on Thursday, was last up 0.24% on the day at 97.04.

Earlier in the day, the data from Switzerland showed that the SVME Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) improved to 50.2 in December from 48.8 in November to beat the market expectation of 49.1 but failed to help the CHF gain traction.

In the second half of the day, markets will pay close attention to fresh developments in the Middle East as well as the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) PMI data from the US and the Federal Open Market Committee's December meeting minutes.

Technical levels to watch for

USD/CHF

Overview
Today last price	0.9726
Today Daily Change	0.0012
Today Daily Change %	0.12
Today daily open	0.9714

Trends
Daily SMA20	0.9795
Daily SMA50	0.9872
Daily SMA100	0.9885
Daily SMA200	0.9925

Levels
Previous Daily High	0.9734
Previous Daily Low	0.9668
Previous Weekly High	0.9832
Previous Weekly Low	0.9729
Previous Monthly High	1.0009
Previous Monthly Low	0.9646
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	0.9709
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	0.9693
Daily Pivot Point S1	0.9677
Daily Pivot Point S2	0.9639
Daily Pivot Point S3	0.9611
Daily Pivot Point R1	0.9743
Daily Pivot Point R2	0.9772
Daily Pivot Point R3	0.9809

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

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