The Swiss National Bank says that Switzerland's current monetary policy is sufficient to maintain inflation at a level that maintains price stability.

Thomas Jordan, a vice-president of the bank, told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper: "We believe that an unchanged monetary policy is enough to bring inflation back to price stability."

Inflation has risen to 2.9 per cent, above the two per cent threshold that the central bank equates with price stability.

The bank decided in mid-June to maintain its key interest target rate unchanged at 2.75 per cent despite inflation rising to a 15-year high in May.

Jordan said that at the moment there were no signs of recession but added there was a "clear slowdown".

He also warned in the newspaper that the central bank would have to tighten monetary policy if wage negotiations for 2009 between employers and unions resulted in salary increases.

The Swiss Trade Union Federation criticised such a move, arguing that compensation for inflation was a legitimate demand.

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative