The pair rose to near two-week highs on Wednesday, as concerns over the financial situation in the euro zone and ongoing political uncertainty in Italy boosted demand for the safe haven greenback. Markets were jittery amid fears the bailout deal for Cyprus could set a precedent for future bailouts in larger euro zone states with troubled financial sectors, with bank depositors and bond holders forced to foot the bill. Elsewhere, talks in Italy aimed at forming a coalition government continued after general elections in late February resulted in a political stalemate, amid growing concerns that the country may have to return to the polls. In Switzerland, the KOF Economic Research Agency said its economic barometer declined to 0.99 in March, from a reading of 1.04 the previous month. Analysts had expected the index to tick down to 1.02 this month. USD/CHF hit 0.9514 during European morning trade, EUR/CHF slipping 0.13%, to hit 1.2174.
EasyForexNews Research Team