Swiss Inflation Unexpectedly Slows as Goods Costs Decline
(Bloomberg) -- Swiss inflation unexpectedly eased — offering reassurance to Swiss National Bank officials who’ve lowered borrowing costs for two straight meetings.
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Consumer prices rose 1.3% from a year ago in June, the statistics office said Thursday. That’s less than economists estimated and down from May’s 1.4%, which was the fastest clip this year.
The slowdown was helped by a 0.2% annual decline in the cost of goods, while services were up 2.4%. Core inflation also moderated to 1.1%, defying expectations for it to quicken.
The Swiss franc fell on the data, easing 0.3% versus the euro to 0.9753 — its weakest in a month.
The SNB has cut interest rates at its last two meetings — kicking off its easing campaign before global peers like the European Central Bank. With the Swiss benchmark now at 1.25%, economists envisage one more reduction this year, though it’s unclear whether it will come in September or December.
Policymakers have said the third quarter will see slightly faster inflation, but that it will then slow — reaching 1% in 2026. Without the rate cuts, the forecast would have been even lower, SNB President Thomas Jordan said this month.
Switzerland has one of Europe’s lowest inflation rates. Data from the neighboring euro area showed prices rose an annual 2.5% there in June — down a touch from May. Based on the European Union’s harmonized measure, the Swiss saw an advance of 1.3% last month.
--With assistance from Joel Rinneby, Kristian Siedenburg and Naomi Tajitsu.
(Updates with franc in fourth paragraph.)
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