The Ultimate Guide to
What is the USD/CHF?
The USD/CHF currency pair is also known as the dollar swissy and is one fo the forex major pairs. The US dollar/Swiss franc pair is one of the most popular currency pairs to trade worldwide. The BIS reports that that annual volume traded in 2016 was $180 billion, up 3.6% from 2015. In the month of March USD/CHF has moved roughly between 0.996 and 1.02. The dollar has traded in a 52-week trading range of between 0.9444 – 1.0344 and is currently trading at $1.0024.
What are the Fundamental influences of the USD/CHF?
The interest rate policy of the Swiss National Bank(SNB) unpins a relatively stable Swiss franc. However, USD/CHF is not immune from political developments, fiscal policy, and interest rate in the EU, US, and the rest of the G8. Brexit and the Trump Administration provides further uncertainty to the Dollar/Swiss franc rate in the near to medium term. The quantitative easing in the EU and Switzerland currently still underway may influence the USD/CHF in the future. Growth prospects and the unemployment rate in the EU is major factor. Germany may be the engine room of Europe but employment rates in many parts of the EU, such France, Greece and Italy are low. Although ECB does consider the unemployment rate when setting interest rates, its primary role is maintaining price stability.
3 Factors that could influence the USD/CHF in 2017
The interest rate differential in the US and Switzerland also plays a role in the direction of the USD/CHF. Unlike in SNB and ECB, the Federal Reserve Bank in the US also focuses on reducing unemployment. The Fed is likely to continue its gradual monetary tightening due to record low unemployment figures.
The Swiss National Bank is primarily concerned with fighting inflation and is often active in currency markets to maintain relative strength of the Swiss franc. Although in early 2015, the Dollar Swiss experienced a one-day appreciation of over 30% when the SNB failed to maintain its peg against the Euro. Should inflation rise, the SNB may increase interest rates.
Brexit also poses significant challenges for the USD/CHF. The move by Britain to leave the EU has sparked similar calls in France and Italy, creating uncertainty in the EU.
How to trade USD /CHF
At London Capital Group, clients have access to over 60 forex pairs to choose from. There is no minimum deposit requirement and clients are required to have enough funds to cover margin calls. Currency accounts fall into three margin groups: major, minor, and exotic. Each margin group is classified according to four tiers. The lowest leverage for an exotic currency pair is five and the highest is 50. The margin call level is set a 10%. LCG provides online video tutorials that include basic terminologies and trading strategies.
Trading the USD/CHF with a FOREX/CFD Broker
Trading forex online involves the use of leverage, which can magnify profits and losses. While various strategies such as stop losses can be employed to limit losses, market direction can change extremely quickly, leading to massive losses. London Capital Group Forex and CFD broker offer two trading platforms: LCG Trader and MT4. Clients have two accounts to choose from: Classic and ECN.
London Capital Group classifies the currency accounts in terms of margin group and tier level. USD/CHF is classified as exotic and is available across all four tier levels, offering clients the following on its standard account:
• Ave spread 2.5
• Min trade size 0.01 Lot
• Pip position 0.0001
• Value of 1 pip/lot CHF 10
• Max Leverage 1:50 (tier1)
• Max MT4 Lot: 40 (tier4)
Summary
According to the Bank for International Settlements, the USD/CHF currency pair is the sixth largest worldwide traded by volume. Its high liquidity, inverse correlation to the EUR/CHF, the uncertainty about Brexit, and EU growth concerns, presents currency traders with many trading opportunities.
