Forexpros – The U.S. dollar was almost unchanged against the Swiss franc on Tuesday, swinging between small gains and losses as concerns over a series of potential downgrades in the euro zone supported safe haven demand.
USD/CHF hit 0.9388 during European morning trade, the pair’s highest since February 23; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.9363, edging down 0.08%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.9246, Monday’s low and resistance at 0.9440, the high of February 2.
Rating agencies warned on Monday that last week’s European Union summit did not go far enough in easing immediate concerns about the region’s debt woes.
Moody’s said it would review ratings of all European Union member states in the first quarter of 2012, while Fitch Ratings said the summit had failed to provide a “comprehensive” solution to the debt crisis.
Meanwhile, concerns over mass euro zone downgrades persisted after ratings agency Standard and Poor’s placed 15 euro zone nations on review for a potential downgrade ahead of the summit last week.
Earlier Tuesday, the Swiss government cut its gross domestic product forecasts, saying that the country’s economy may see a more pronounced slowdown this year and the next.
In a report, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs lowered the GDP forecast to 0.5% in 2012 from a 0.9% growth forecast in September. The report also forecast a 1.8% rise in the country’s GDP in the fourth quarter, from a 1.9% increase in the third quarter.
Elsewhere, the Swissie was steady against the euro with EUR/CHF inching down 0.06%, to hit 1.2350.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on retail sales, while the Federal Reserve was to announce its federal funds rate.
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