The Swiss franc strengthened against the dollar after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the U.S. central bank’s first round of asset purchases improved the economy and that further buying may help more.
The franc continued a three-day appreciation versus the U.S. currency and reached a record. Bernanke said further asset purchases, or quantitative easing, by the Federal Reserve has “the ability to ease financial conditions” and praised the earlier round of stimulus as an “effective program.” Swiss inflation held at the lowest in almost a year in September.
Remarks supporting more quantitative easing are “always positive for the franc against the dollar,” said Henrik Gullberg, a strategist in London at Deutsche Bank AG. “Swiss franc developments are so much in the hands of global risk appetite.”
The franc was 0.5 percent stronger at 96.57 centimes per dollar as of 9:24 a.m. in London, setting a second record in as many days, according to Bloomberg data. The Swiss currency fell 0.2 percent versus the euro to 1.3321.
Brian Sack, the New York Fed official in charge of carrying out FOMC decisions, yesterday said a further expansion of the central bank’s $2.3 trillion balance sheet would help stimulate a recovery that is forecast to be “relatively tepid.” Bernanke made his comments in response to questions in Providence, Rhode Island, at a forum with college students yesterday.
Swiss Inflation
Swiss consumer prices increased 0.3 percent from a year earlier, the Federal Statistics Office in Neuchatel said in an e-mailed statement today. That’s in line with the median forecast of 11 economists in a Bloomberg News survey and the weakest since December 2009. In the month, consumer prices were unchanged.
The Swiss franc’s 10 percent gain versus the euro this year is pushing down the price of imported goods, giving the Swiss National Bank room to keep its benchmark rate at 0.25 percent as the economy cools. The SNB said last month that inflation may “temporarily turn slightly negative” in early 2011.
In June, the Zurich-based central bank signaled it will phase out its 15-month policy of countering franc gains through purchases of foreign currencies to protect exports and fight deflation. It said on Sept. 16 that it would only take “measures necessary” if there was any “renewed threat of deflation.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Morris in London at smorris39@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Tilles at dtilles@bloomberg.net
http://jodnet.blogspot.com
The franc continued a three-day appreciation versus the U.S. currency and reached a record. Bernanke said further asset purchases, or quantitative easing, by the Federal Reserve has “the ability to ease financial conditions” and praised the earlier round of stimulus as an “effective program.” Swiss inflation held at the lowest in almost a year in September.
Remarks supporting more quantitative easing are “always positive for the franc against the dollar,” said Henrik Gullberg, a strategist in London at Deutsche Bank AG. “Swiss franc developments are so much in the hands of global risk appetite.”
The franc was 0.5 percent stronger at 96.57 centimes per dollar as of 9:24 a.m. in London, setting a second record in as many days, according to Bloomberg data. The Swiss currency fell 0.2 percent versus the euro to 1.3321.
Brian Sack, the New York Fed official in charge of carrying out FOMC decisions, yesterday said a further expansion of the central bank’s $2.3 trillion balance sheet would help stimulate a recovery that is forecast to be “relatively tepid.” Bernanke made his comments in response to questions in Providence, Rhode Island, at a forum with college students yesterday.
Swiss Inflation
Swiss consumer prices increased 0.3 percent from a year earlier, the Federal Statistics Office in Neuchatel said in an e-mailed statement today. That’s in line with the median forecast of 11 economists in a Bloomberg News survey and the weakest since December 2009. In the month, consumer prices were unchanged.
The Swiss franc’s 10 percent gain versus the euro this year is pushing down the price of imported goods, giving the Swiss National Bank room to keep its benchmark rate at 0.25 percent as the economy cools. The SNB said last month that inflation may “temporarily turn slightly negative” in early 2011.
In June, the Zurich-based central bank signaled it will phase out its 15-month policy of countering franc gains through purchases of foreign currencies to protect exports and fight deflation. It said on Sept. 16 that it would only take “measures necessary” if there was any “renewed threat of deflation.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Morris in London at smorris39@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Tilles at dtilles@bloomberg.net
http://jodnet.blogspot.com
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