USD/CHF unfazed by SNB, stuck in a range around parity mark

The USD/CHF pair was confined within a narrow trading range and seesawed between tepid gains / minor losses around the parity mark.

The US central bank on Wednesday raised interest rates, as expected, and signaled two more rate-hikes by the end of this year. Market participants were expecting a more hawkish tone and hence, were disappointed with the Fed's neutral stance. Following the announcement, a sharp slide in the US treasury bond yields triggered a broad based US Dollar sell-off and dragged the pair to its lowest level since Feb. 17.

The pair on Thursday consolidated previous session's sharp downslide and was unfazed by the SNB monetary policy announcement. On Thursday, the Swiss National Bank, on expected lines, left the sight deposit rate unchanged at -0.75% and held 3-Month Libor Target Range steady between -1.25% to -0.25%. Even the central bank's quarterly assessment report failed to provide any impetus and the pair kept daily range near the parity mark.

Today's US economic docket features the release of housing market data, Philly Fed manufacturing index and initial weekly jobless claims, due later during the NA session.

Technical levels to watch

Immediate support on the downside is pegged near 0.9965 level, below which the pair is likely to accelerate the slide towards the very important 200-day SMA support near the 0.9900 handle. On the upside, sustained recovery above 1.0015-20 immediate resistance seems to trigger a short-covering bounce towards 100-day SMA hurdle near 1.0060 region, above which the pair is likely to make a fresh attempt towards reclaiming the 1.0100 handle.