Forex - Weaker euro tumbles to record low vs. Swiss franc

Forex Pros – pros – The broadly weaker euro tumbled to a record low against the Swiss franc on Monday, as the cost of insuring Italian government debt against default soared to a euro-lifetime high, amid concerns that the region’s sovereign debt crisis could spread from Greece.

EUR/CHF hit 1.1694 during European afternoon trade, the pair’s lowest level since the launch of the single currency in 1999; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.1726, free-falling 1.72%.

The pair was likely to find support at 1.1650 and resistance at 1.1920, the day’s high.

Senior European Union policymakers, including European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet and EU economy commissioner Olli Rehn were meeting in Brussels to discuss a second bailout package for Greece and assess the risk of the sovereign debt crisis spreading to Italy, the euro zone’s third largest economy.

The single currency was also weighed after a Financial Times report on Sunday said some euro zone officials were looking at accepting a partial default of Greek debt in order to put the country’s debt on a more sustainable footing.

Risk sentiment was also dented after data on Friday showed that U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by just 18,000 in June, far below the 89,000 increase forecast by economists, with employers hiring the fewest workers in nine months.

The unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 9.2%, the highest level in six months.

The euro was also sharply lower against the safe haven yen, with EUR/JPY plunging 1.77% to hit 112.91.

On Sunday, Swiss National Bank Chairman Philipp Hildebrand said price stability in Switzerland is not under threat at present, giving the central bank no reason to intervene to stem the Swiss franc’s steep gains.

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