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The Swiss central bank confirmed a record CHF54 billion overall profit in 2017 (Keystone) - Click to enlarge The Swiss National Bank (SNB) was less active on the foreign exchange markets last year, acquiring CHF48.2 billion ($50.8 billion) in foreign currency to weaken the franc. On Thursday, the central bank nonetheless confirmed massive profits on currency holdings in 2017. In 2017, the SNB purchased...

Swiss Franc The Euro has fallen by 0.37% to 1.167 CHF. EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, March 22(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates The US dollar has not recovered from the judgment that yesterday’s that Fed was not as hawkish as many had anticipated. There was no indication that officials thought they were behind the curve or prepared to accelerate the pace of hikes....

Last week, work started on a project to construct 1,000 apartments in Geneva. The project known as the Quartier de l’Etang will unfold over an 11 hectare site in Vernier, not far from Geneva airport. The video above shows the commencement ceremony and a computer animation of the completed project. The man behind it, Claude Berda, is a French-Swiss billionaire who started out selling jeans in the corridors of Dauphine...

Collectively, the central bank sector claims to hold the world’s largest above ground gold bar stockpile, some 33,800 tonnes of gold bars. Individually within this group, some central banks claim to be the top holders of gold bullion in the world, with individual holdings in the thousands of tonnes range. This worldwide central bank group, also known as the official sector, spans central banks (such as the Deutsche...

Solutions are only possible outside these ossified, self-serving centralized hierarchies. Correspondent Dan F. asked me to reprint some posts on solutions to the systemic problems I’ve outlined for years, most recently in How Much Longer Can We Get Away With It? and Checking In on the Four Intersecting Cycles. I appreciate the request, because it’s all too easy to dwell on what’s broken rather than on the difficult task...

Divergences Continue to Send Warning Signals The chart formation built in the course of the early February sell-off and subsequent rebound continues to look ominous, so we are closely watching the proceedings. There are now numerous new divergences in place that clearly represent a major warning signal for the stock market. For example, here is a chart comparing the SPX to the NDX (Nasdaq 100 Index) and the broad-based...

The most significant event in the coming week is the first FOMC meeting under the Chair Powell. At ECB President Draghi’s first meeting he cut interest rates. He cuts rates at his second meeting as well, underwinding the two hikes the ECB approved under Trichet. At BOJ Governor Kuroda’s first meeting, an aggressive monetary policy was announced that was notable not only in its size, but also in the range of assets to be...

Summary Hong Kong may impose a tax on unsold apartments as an effort to increase supply and cool off the housing market. Bank of Israel’s MPC had a split vote last month for the first time in three years. South Africa President Ramaphosa said the ANC wants Julius Malema of the opposition EFF to rejoin the party. Former South Africa President Zuma will face trial on 16 criminal charges. Stock Markets In the EM equity...

SWISS currently operates 36 routes from Geneva; it plans to reduce this to 30. (Keystone) - Click to enlarge The CEO of Swiss International Air Lines has said that it is not impossible that the carrier’s Geneva operations be taken over by Eurowings, Lufthansa’s low-cost arm, in 2019. In an interview published in the Agefi newspaper on Monday, Thomas Klühr said he remained “confident” that such a scenario...

Les retraités pourront-ils toujours à l’avenir retirer leur 2e pilier selon les modalités actuellement en vigueur? - Click to enlarge C’est une réforme majeure du 2ème pilier qui a été repoussée sous la Coupole fédérale. Dans le cadre de la modification du régime des prestations complémentaires, le Conseil national a refusé de limiter le retrait de l’avoir vieillesse sous forme de capital. Aujourd’hui, un assuré peut...