"The October release doesn't really change anything for the SNB"
- Credit Suisse economist Maxime Botteron
Producer and import prices in Switzerland advanced slightly last month, helped by the Swiss National Bank's policy of keeping the local currency from becoming overly strong. The Federal Statistical Office said producer and import prices rose 0.4% in October from a year earlier, up from a 0.3% rise in the previous month, but below analysts' expectations of a 0.5% increase. On a monthly basis, they were lower 0.1% from September. At the same time, the SNB expects a slightly positive inflation rate in 2013, and a 0.4% growth in 2014.
"The October release doesn't really change anything for the SNB," said Credit Suisse economist Maxime Botteron. "There's still no inflationary pressure and on the other hand, the deflationary effect we saw through lower import prices has also disappeared after the introduction of the 1.20 floor."
"We see the same as with consumer prices: there is a normalisation but at a low level," said Sarasin analyst Alessandro Bee.
The Swiss blue-chip index SMI, a measure of the largest and most actively traded companies, rose 0.39 per cent to 6,722.76. The broader Swiss Performance Index advanced 0.23 per cent to stand at 6,176.81.
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