Swiss action sparks talk of ‘currency war’

Article reports that the Swiss National Bank moved to weaken the Swiss franc on the 12 March 2009, the first time a big central bank has intervened in the foreign exchange markets since Japan sought to weaken the yen in 2004. The SNB said the currency’s strength represented an 'inappropriate tightening of monetary conditions' as it battled against a slowdown in the Swiss economy.

SNB: Press Release, 12.3.09: Monetary policy assessment of 12 March 2009 http://www.snb.ch/en/mmr/reference/pre_20090312/source/pre_20090312.en.pdf

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