SNB Will Cut Rate Just One More Time This Cycle, Survey Shows

(Bloomberg) — The Swiss National Bank will lower interest rates just one more time this cycle, a Bloomberg survey of economists shows.

The final 25 basis-point cut will come in September in a followup to two previous moves of that size in March and June, according to the poll, conducted July 5-11. That would bring the key rate to 1%.

The SNB was the first major advanced-economy central bank to kick off easing this year, having also been able to halt rate hikes before global peers. That’s primarily because Switzerland enjoyed one of the lowest inflation spikes in the world when the cost-of-living crisis hit. 

Central bank President Thomas Jordan said earlier this month that he’s “relatively comfortable” with the country’s prospects for consumer prices. 

Inflation rose 1.3% from a year ago in June, and economists in the survey expect it to average that level in the third and fourth quarter, before slowing even more next year. That’s well within the SNB’s 0-2% target range.

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