Forexpros – The U.S. dollar rose against the Swiss franc on Monday, as concerns over Spain’s sovereign debt crisis continued to weigh on market sentiment but the greenback’s gains were limited by renewed expectations for easing measures by the Federal Reserve.
USD/CHF hit 0.9090 during European morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.9087, adding 0.25%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.9051, the low of April 27 and resistance at 0.9113, the high if April 3.
Concerns over the economic outlook for Spain re-remerged after official data confirmed that the country’s economy entered a recession in the first quarter, with gross domestic product contracting by 0.3% in the three months to March and 0.4% year-on-year.
Market reaction remained muted as the figures were slightly better than estimates released by the Bank of Spain last week for a 0.4% contraction in the first quarter and a 0.5% contraction on the year.
The data came as ratings agency Standard & Poor’s announced widespread credit ratings downgrades on Spain’s troubled banking sector, following a two notch downgrade of the country’s sovereign credit rating last week.
Meanwhile, the greenback remained under pressure after Friday’s weaker-than-forecast first quarter growth data added to speculation that the Federal Reserve may implement a third round of easing measures.
Elsewhere, the Swissie was steady against the euro with EUR/CHF edging up 0.03%, to hit 1.2017.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on core personal consumption expenditures price inflation and on personal spending, followed by a report on business activity in Chicago.
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