The Swiss Franc is trading mildly lower versus the Pound on Thursday, extending losses for a second straight day. On Wednesday the Swiss France settled -0.2% lower versus the Pound at 1.2141.
At 11:15 UTC, GBP/CHF is trading +0.1% at 1.2151. This is towards the upper end of the daily traded range of 1.2105 – 1.2168 as investors digest dire Swiss data and an ongoing lock down for the UK.
Swiss Economy Trampled By Covid-19
The Swiss Franc traded on the back foot on Thursday after a Swiss leading indicator posted a record breaking drop in April, as the coronavirus crisis wreaked havoc on the economy. The think tank KOF’s closely watched economic barometer plunged to 63.5, a drop of 28.2 points, double the size of a drop ever seen before, taking the barometer to a level last seen in the financial crisis.
The report shows that all sectors across the Swiss economy were heavily impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, however manufacturing led the rout.
Swiss retail sales also dropped sharply in March. Data from the Federal Statistics Office revealed that retail sales slumped -6.2% month on month in March, significantly worse than the -4.2% decline that analysts had forecast. On an annual basis, retail sales dropped -5.6% when analysts had pencilled in a -3.6% decline.
The dreadful data comes as the Swiss government is gradually relaxing lock down measures and reopening the economy.
Pound Stronger Despite Ongoing Lockdown
The Pound was moving cautiously higher despite expectations that the UK will remain in lockdown for longer. Boris Johnson is expected to warn Britain today that there will be no early exit from lockdown as the UK coronavirus death toll passes 26,000, the second highest in Europe. The higher figure comes as the government changed the way it reported covid-19 deaths to include fatalities in the community as well as the already reported hospital numbers.
Meanwhile, the Office of National Statistics revealed that two thirds of British companies have applied for the governments emergency scheme to pay workers who are temporarily laid off during the coronavirus crisis. The data also showed that 1 in 4 businesses that were continuing to trade had seen turnover fall by over half of normal levels. The data highlights the damage that the lock down measures have inflicted on the UK economy.
