Investors were concerned about Chinese economic growth early that day, after the Chinese Premier made a statement. The IMF's reduced world economic outlook and weaker than anticipated US retail sales figures did not have a strong impact on the stock market direction.
"If the euro weakens due to global risk aversion toward $1.20, we would expect dollar-franc to reach parity," said Bernd Berg, Foreign-Exchange Strategist at Credit Suisse in Zurich.