Both the euro and the Swiss franc were top performers this week thanks to rising negative global risk sentiment and counter currency weakness, and possibly on improving business sentiment data from Europe as well.
The Euro
European Headlines and Economic data
Monday:
Germany Infection Rate Up With Surge in Meat, Refugee Facilities
ECB money-printing shouldn’t become ‘unbound’, says Weidmann
ECB’s de Guindos sees risk of reopening too soon after lockdown
Tuesday:
Flash Eurozone Manufacturing PMI at 46.9 vs. 39.4 in May
Flash Germany Manufacturing PMI at 44.6 vs. 36.6 in May
Flash France Manufacturing PMI at 52.1 in June vs. 40.6 in May
Wednesday:
German Ifo business climate index surged to 86.2 in June from 79.7 in May
The U.S. is considering $3.1 billion in new tariffs on products from France, Germany, Spain and the UK – this was likely the catalyst for the uniform move lower in the euro against the majors on the session, given that broad risk sentiment was moving more negative after more news of of rising covid cases and a negative global economic outlook call by the International Monetary Fund.
Thursday:
German consumer sentiment set to rise in July
ECB Sets Up New Backstop for Central Banks Outside Euro Area
ECB to release documents to defuse German court challenge
ECB can hold back on bond buys if markets calm, Mersch says
Friday:
The ECB’s Christine Lagarde thinks the global economy is past the worst
The Swiss Franc
Swiss Headlines and Economic data
There were no major headlines or catalysts from Switzerland to driver the Swiss franc, and price action was a choppy mess for most of the week, indicating counter currency flows were a bigger influence than even broad risk sentiment.
At the end of the week, however, the Swiss franc began to move broadly higher against the majors as global risk sentiment increasingly moved more negative. The catalyst was likely the continued focus and fears of rising coronavirus cases, especially in the U.S. as states started moving back into lockdown mode. It was on this theme that the Swiss franc accelerated higher during the Friday trading session, to take the top spot against the major currencies for the week.