USD/CHF Edges Up on U.S. Labor Data, Safe-Haven Buying

Key Moments

USD/CHF trades near 0.7740, up 0.15%, breaking a multi-day losing streak.
US Initial Jobless Claims register at 212K, below the 215K consensus and above the prior revised 208K.
Swiss Franc remains underpinned by safe-haven flows and fading expectations of near-term SNB rate cuts.

USD/CHF Rebounds After Recent Weakness

USD/CHF is trading around 0.7740 on Thursday at the time of writing, gaining 0.15% on the day and reversing several consecutive sessions of losses. The move reflects a modest recovery in the US Dollar (USD), although broader market conditions still show strong demand for safe-haven assets.

US Labor Data Offers Limited but Immediate Support to the Dollar

The US Dollar is finding some stability following the release of weekly labor market figures in the United States. Initial Jobless Claims came in at 212K for the week ending February 21, compared with a revised 208K in the previous week and below the 215K consensus estimate. Continuing Jobless Claims declined to 1.833 million from 1.864 million, suggesting a degree of resilience in the labor market.

These data points are providing short-term support to the Greenback but are not seen as shifting the broader outlook for US monetary policy.

DXY Recovers as Markets Look Past Political Uncertainty

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the performance of the Greenback against a basket of six major currencies, is hovering near 97.70. The index is benefiting from bargain hunting after several days of declines. Market participants appear to be looking beyond the immediate effects of political uncertainty in Washington, following a move by US President Donald Trump to announce new 10% tariffs despite a partial ruling by the Supreme Court that limited some of his trade measures.

Swiss Franc Retains Structural Support as Safe-Haven

Despite the Dollar’s rebound, the Swiss Franc (CHF) continues to enjoy a firm underlying bid. The currency remains supported by ongoing trade tensions and persistent concerns about the US fiscal outlook. At the same time, expectations for imminent rate cuts by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) are diminishing.

Swiss inflation held at 0.1% in January, close to the lower boundary of the SNB’s 0%-2% target range. This has reinforced the view that policymakers are likely to leave interest rates unchanged over the coming months, adding to the currency’s structural appeal.

Policy Expectations: Fed Steady, CHF Driven by Defensive Flows

On the US monetary policy side, markets continue to anticipate that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will keep interest rates unchanged at its upcoming meetings, though expectations for potential easing later in the year remain in place.

This backdrop – a stabilizing US Dollar alongside a Swiss Franc bolstered by its defensive characteristics – is contributing to a relatively measured trading range in USD/CHF. The pair is likely to remain sensitive to political headlines and forthcoming macroeconomic data releases.

US Dollar Performance Against Major Currencies

The table below shows the percentage change of the US Dollar (USD) against major peers today. According to the data, the US Dollar has been strongest versus the New Zealand Dollar.

	USD	EUR	GBP	JPY	CAD	AUD	NZD	CHF
USD		0.02%	0.15%	-0.14%	0.08%	0.22%	0.31%	0.18%
EUR	-0.02%		0.12%	-0.15%	0.06%	0.19%	0.29%	0.16%
GBP	-0.15%	-0.12%		-0.25%	-0.06%	0.07%	0.16%	0.03%
JPY	0.14%	0.15%	0.25%		0.21%	0.35%	0.42%	0.31%
CAD	-0.08%	-0.06%	0.06%	-0.21%		0.14%	0.23%	0.11%
AUD	-0.22%	-0.19%	-0.07%	-0.35%	-0.14%		0.09%	-0.04%
NZD	-0.31%	-0.29%	-0.16%	-0.42%	-0.23%	-0.09%		-0.13%
CHF	-0.18%	-0.16%	-0.03%	-0.31%	-0.11%	0.04%	0.13%

The heat map represents percentage changes of major currencies relative to one another. The base currency is selected from the left-hand column, while the quote currency is taken from the top row. For instance, choosing the US Dollar from the left column and moving across to the Japanese Yen cell shows the percentage change for USD (base)/JPY (quote).