Central bank warns about economic growth risks
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) says there are increasing uncertainties in the economic outlook for Switzerland, but sees no reason to change its monetary policy.
Thomas Jordan, a member of the bank’s governing board, on Thursday reiterated growth forecasts for gross domestic product as well as inflation.
“The National Bank forecasts a GDP growth of 1.5 to two per cent with an average inflation rate of two per cent in 2008,” Jordan said at a speech in Zurich.
He said the Swiss economy remained caught between upside price risks and downside growth risks.
He warned that an end to the current financial turmoil was not in sight, while a further decline in United States real estate prices could spark renewed writedowns.
In a related development, SNB President Jean-Pierre Roth has expressed confidence in Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, which has been hard hit by the subprime mortgage crisis in the US.
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