Franc hovers near six-week low after weak growth data

Swiss frank rose in European trade against a basket of major rivals, recovering from recent lows against the dollar as the greenback tapers off.

Despite the gains, the franc is still hovering near six-week lows against the dollar following weak Swiss growth data for the second quarter of the year, which hurt chances of an SNB interest rate hike later this month. 

USD/CHF fell 0.2% to 0.8823, with a session-high at 0.8858, after closing down 0.3% on Friday, the second loss in a row, following strong US payrolls data in August. 

Franc fell to six-week lows last week against dollar at 0.8875 following a spate of weak Swiss data.

Swiss Economy

Recent Swiss data GDP growth flat in the second quarter of the year, compared to a 0.3% growth rate in the first quarter. 

Such data hurt the chances of another 0.25% interest rate hike by the Swiss National Bank at the September meeting.

SNB 

The Swiss National Bank raised interest rates by 0.25% at the June meeting to 1.75%, the highest since 2008, in order to combat inflation.

Swiss inflation has stabilized at 1.6% in August, showcasing the success of the SNB to control inflation below the 2% medium-term target.