The Swiss National Bank decided to hold its benchmark rate and signaled increased willingness to intervene in the foreign exchange market to counter the excessive appreciation of currency amid the conflict in the Middle East. The central bank left its policy rate at zero percent on Thursday, in line with market expectations.
The SNB had reduced the key rate by 175 basis points since March 2024. The bank exited its negative rate in 2022 after holding it for over seven years.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.