Swiss franc strengthens against EUR, reaches historical maximum against RON

The Swiss franc – Romanian leu exchange rate reached a peak of RON 3.35 per franc on Wednesday, after the Swiss currency has continuously appreciated throughout the year. The Romanian currency depreciated by 18 percent against the Swiss franc compared to January this year. The change was higher in September, with the RON/Swiss franc exchange rate going up by 1.8 percent compared to the beginning of the month. This has affected Romanians who have loans in the Swiss currency. Around 4.5 percent of the total existing loans in Romania are in francs or yens. Internationally, the Swiss franc has appreciated against the euro and analysts expect demand for the Swiss currency to strengthen. “Gains in the Swiss franc accelerated in June after the Swiss National Bank abandoned its policy of intervening to sell its currency, a campaign it started in March 2009 in a bid to ward off deflation – a sustained period of falling prices – and stimulate its domestic economy,” wrote the Financial Times. The franc’s move took its gains against the euro this year to more than 15 per cent, with demand for the currency underpinned by Switzerland’s robust economic performance, its current account surplus and traditional safe status at times of market turmoil, according to the FT. romania-insider.com