The USD/CHF extended its losses for the third consecutive day as market mood shifted sour due to US President Donald Trump's attacks on Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which investors saw as a threat to the independence of the US central bank. At the time of writing, the pair trades at 0.8080, down 0.06.
Tariffs were the main theme in the financials market until Friday, when Powell turned slightly hawkish and even said that tariffs could be inflation-prone. Consequently, Trump questioned why the Fed has not cut interest rates like the European Central Bank (ECB), as Oil and grocery prices had edged down.
On Monday, he continued his attack on Powell, calling him a “looser” and saying that he needs to lower interest rates “NOW!” Hence, fearful traders seeking safety turned to the Swiss Franc, which has appreciated over 6% during the last eight trading days.
Technicals suggest that the USD/CHF should extend its losses, but sellers need to gain some steam and clear the April 21 low of 0.8038. If surpassed, the pair could reach the 0.79 handle for the first time since September 2011.
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is oversold, but as it has failed to clear the latest peak, suggests that bears remain in charge.
Conversely, buyers need to reclaim April 21 peak of 0.8163, so they can challenge the next resistance level being the April 14 swing high of 0.8267.
The table below shows the percentage change of Swiss Franc (CHF) against listed major currencies this week. Swiss Franc was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.
USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
USD | -0.05% | -0.01% | -0.08% | -0.02% | 0.03% | 0.07% | -0.12% | |
EUR | 0.05% | 0.03% | -0.06% | 0.00% | 0.03% | 0.11% | -0.08% | |
GBP | 0.01% | -0.03% | -0.09% | -0.04% | 0.00% | 0.08% | -0.11% | |
JPY | 0.08% | 0.06% | 0.09% | 0.08% | 0.11% | 0.24% | 0.03% | |
CAD | 0.02% | -0.00% | 0.04% | -0.08% | 0.04% | 0.09% | -0.11% | |
AUD | -0.03% | -0.03% | -0.01% | -0.11% | -0.04% | 0.06% | -0.13% | |
NZD | -0.07% | -0.11% | -0.08% | -0.24% | -0.09% | -0.06% | -0.18% | |
CHF | 0.12% | 0.08% | 0.11% | -0.03% | 0.11% | 0.13% | 0.18% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Swiss Franc from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent CHF (base)/USD (quote).