The Swiss National Bank (SNB) has reported a loss of CHF142.4 billion ($142.6 billion) for the first nine months of 2022 as turmoil in global currency markets took a toll on the value of its foreign-exchange portfolio.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Bloomberg/ts
Português
pt
Banco Central anuncia perdas de CHF143 bi em nove meses
The central bank’s foreign-currency positions resulted in a loss of CHF141 billion, and it also saw a valuation loss on its gold holdings and on its Swiss currency positions.
Monday’s numbers puts the SNB on course for the highest annual loss on record. While those results won’t influence monetary policy, they still render it increasingly unlikely that the institution will be able to make a payout to the Swiss government and cantons. That would be only the second time in the central bank’s more-than-100-year history that it would have to skip such a payment.
The SNB spent more than a decade intervening in currency markets to stop the Swiss franc from appreciating, resulting in a portfolio of foreign reserves of more than CHF800 billion.
It’s main monetary policy tool now is interest rates – it abandoned negative rates in late September – but the SNB has said it is still willing to carry out interventions in future.
The central bank raised its key rate to -0.25% in June and to 0.5% last month. It still made CHF69.3 million in the third quarter off that negative rates regime, bringing the overall tally since it started charging banks for sight deposits in 2015 to CHF11.9 billion, according to Bloomberg calculations.
The SNB is a joint-stock company, with both public-sector and private shareholders, and its earnings are calculated by comparing asset prices at the start and end of each period. It is therefore at risk of big swings in profitability and interim losses can still change by year-end. It plans to report preliminary 2022 results on January 9.
More
More
Switzerland exits negative interest rate era
This content was published on
The Swiss National Bank has raised interest rates into positive territory for the first time in seven years with a 0.75% hike on Thursday.
Green party leader criticises government’s neo-liberal policy
This content was published on
The Green Party delegates' meeting opened on Saturday morning in Vicques (JU) with a speech by party president Lisa Mazzone. Mazzone took particular aim at the Federal Council's policy towards the United States.
Working on Sundays is detrimental to well-being, says Swiss study
This content was published on
A study by the University of Bern shows that working on Sundays is detrimental to well-being and particularly affects women.
Safra Sarasin private bank and former asset manager sentenced
This content was published on
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has fined private bank J. Safra Sarasin CHF3.5 million for aggravated money laundering. A former bank employee received a six-month suspended prison sentence.
JPMorgan to pay CHF270 million to settle 1MDB claims
This content was published on
JPMorgan Chase has agreed to pay CHF270 million to the Malaysian government to settle all issues related to its role in the 1MDB financial scandal.
Famine confirmed in Gaza for first time, says UN-backed report
This content was published on
Famine has been declared in a northern part of the Gaza Strip, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system.
Zurich Airport ground handling staff to strike on Friday
This content was published on
Ground handling staff at Zurich Airport have announced a strike for Friday afternoon. According to a union, 200 jobs are at risk.
This content was published on
Philippe Lazzarini will step down as head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) at the end of his term in March, he announced on Thursday.
Swiss government predicts CHF845 million budget deficit in 2026
This content was published on
The Federal Council published its 2026 budget proposal on Thursday: a projected deficit of CHF845 million francs ($1 billion).
This content was published on
The Gösgen nuclear power plant in northwestern Switzerland will be out of service for six months. It has not been connected to the grid since late May.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Explainer: how Switzerland is dealing with rising prices
This content was published on
Inflation is comparatively moderate in Switzerland, but rising energy and food prices are putting a strain on small budgets.
Too soon to say inflation has peaked, says SNB boss
This content was published on
The president of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) says the inflation outlook is more uncertain than normal and it is premature to say prices have peaked.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.