Friday 16 January 2015

Markets in turmoil on end of cap on Swiss franc

Markets were hit on Thursday by the Swiss central bank's decision to abandon its cap of the Swiss franc against the euro.

Bloomberg reports:

The Swiss National Bank roiled markets worldwide with its unexpected decision to abandon the franc’s cap against the euro, knocking down what an official just two days ago reaffirmed as a pillar of policy.

Europe’s shared currency slumped 1.9 percent against the dollar before recouping much of the decline as traders reflected on the decision, which also saw the SNB deepen negative deposit rates. SNB President Thomas Jordan defended the move, saying surprise was necessary. The franc surged as much as 38 percent versus the greenback and gained against all 174 foreign-exchange values tracked by Bloomberg. Volatility jumped to a more than one-year high.

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