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- USD/CHF stabilizes as the US Dollar gains safe-haven support following reports that Iran halted indirect negotiations with America.
- The Greenback rose as renewed Middle East tensions fueled inflation fears and expectations of elevated Federal Reserve interest rates.
- Despite a minor GDP miss, Swiss consumer and industrial activity demonstrated remarkable resilience.
USD/CHF moves little after registering modest gains in the previous day, trading around 0.7870 during the Asian hours on Tuesday. The pair steadies as the US Dollar (USD) remains firm on increased safe-haven demand after Tasnim news agency indicated that Tehran has halted indirect negotiations with the United States. Traders await the Swiss Trade Balance data release due later in the day.
According to the report, Iran and its “Resistance Front” allies, spanning Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq, have established an agenda to completely block the critical Strait of Hormuz and activate additional fronts, including the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, as a means to punish Israel and its supporters.
The escalation was further compounded by an Axios report on X stating that Iran deployed additional naval mines in the strait last week. These combined developments pose a severe obstacle to a swift resolution of the crisis, which has already effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
Renewed tensions in the Middle East continue to fuel global inflation concerns and stoke expectations of elevated Federal Reserve (Fed) policy rates. Reflecting these persistent inflationary pressures, financial markets are now pricing in a potential Federal Reserve (Fed) rate hike before the year ends, with the CME FedWatch tool currently indicating a 39% probability of a quarter-point increase in December.
On Monday, recent economic data from Switzerland presented a mixed but generally strong picture of the country’s financial health. On the growth front, Switzerland’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expanded by 0.4% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to March, falling slightly short of initial market estimates that had predicted a 0.5% expansion.
Despite the minor GDP miss, consumer and industrial activity showed remarkable resilience. Retail sales in Switzerland surged by 1.6% year-on-year in April 2026, far exceeding market expectations for a modest 0.2% rise and following an upwardly revised 1% gain in the previous month.
Compounding this positive momentum, the country’s industrial sector saw a significant boost as the procure.ch–UBS Manufacturing PMI jumped to 57.3 in May 2026 from 54.5 in April. This reading easily beat the market forecast of 54, marking the highest level of manufacturing expansion Switzerland has seen since July 2022.
