Listening: Swiss central bank profits hit by strong franc
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) suffered a fall in net profit in the first three months of the year, due to the poor performance of its foreign currency investments, which the rise in the value of gold was unable to offset.
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Between January and the end of March, the Swiss issuing bank recorded an interim profit – before allocation to the provision for currency reserves – of CHF6.68 billion, more than eight times the annual figure, it announced in a press release on Thursday.
This result is in line with the forecasts of UBS bank economists, who were expecting a profit of between CHF5 and 15 billion, but at the lower end of the range of expectations.
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Swiss central bank resumes foreign currency buying spree
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The Swiss National Bank continued to buy foreign currencies in the fourth quarter of last year.
The SNB’s gold stocks, buoyed by the surge in the price of the precious metal over the past few weeks, generated a capital gain of 43% to CHF12.8 billion. However, foreign currency reserves, penalised by the surge in the Swiss franc, posted a loss of CHF5.3 billion, compared with a profit of CHF52.4 billion a year earlier.
On the other hand, the result on Swiss franc positions limited losses to CHF695.4 million, after -CHF2.4 billion in the first quarter of 2024.
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Swiss franc hits highs against euro and dollar
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The Swiss franc is once again living up to its name as a safe haven.
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