ZURICH (Reuters) -The Swiss National Bank is ready to intervene in foreign currency markets to hit its inflation target, Chairman Martin Schlegel said, despite Switzerland recently being added to a U.S. watch list on currency manipulation.
The SNB, which cut its key interest rate to zero on Thursday, uses interest rates to steer inflation to its 0-2% target, Schlegel told broadcaster SRF.
“We’re also ready to be active on the currency markets,” Schlegel said in the interview broadcast on Saturday.
The U.S. Treasury this month put Switzerland on a list of countries being monitored for unfair currency and trade practices.
Bern is seeking to avoid the 31% trade tariffs Washington has threatened against Switzerland, and Schlegel said the SNB conducts policy in the national interest.
“Switzerland and the SNB are not currency manipulators,” he said. “When we have intervened in the past, we have done it only to achieve our goal of price stability. Our motivation is not to gain an unfair advantage for Swiss exporters.”
There had been a “very good” exchange with U.S. officials the last time Switzerland appeared on the list, and there was a good understanding of why Switzerland was active in foreign currency markets, he said.
Even if Switzerland did reappear on the list, that would mean further dialogue, Schlegel added.
He also backed the government’s proposals for stricter rules for UBS, unveiled earlier this month, which could force the bank to hold $26 billion more in core capital.
“This is not a radical solution,” said Schlegel. “Everyone has an interest in UBS doing well, that UBS is a strong bank and that UBS is also a bank that is strongly capitalised and well prepared in terms of liquidity.”
(Reporting by John Revill)