The Swiss franc firmed against the dollar in early trading on Friday after the Federal Reserve gave a clear signal it may take a breather from its campaign of non-stop interest rate hikes.
The Fed said on Thursday slowing economic growth should help rein in inflation after it lifted overnight rates, as expected, for a 17th straight time to 5.25 percent. The franc was 0.43 percent higher against the dollar at 1.2311 francs. Meanwhile, the Swiss currency was steady against the euro, hovering around an eight-week low of 1.5667, first touched on Tuesday.
A market perception that the Swiss central bank was pursuing a relatively relaxed monetary policy was a factor weighing on the franc'euro exhcnage rate said UBS in a research note. "It is the market's expectation of a continuously expansive SNB policy that continues to push EURCHF higher," said the bank.