Euro tumbles to new nine-year low after Swiss central bank slashes interest rates
The tumbled to new nine-year low after the Swiss central bank slashed interest rates to -0.75 per cent and scrapped its currency "ceiling."
The euro fell to $1.1685 against the US dollar following the shock announcement by its central bank. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 initially shed 2.1 per cent before recovering to trade down 1 percent this morning.
"The Swiss National Bank is lowering interest rates significantly to ensure that the discontinuation of the minimum exchange rate does not lead to an inappropriate tightening of monetary conditions," it said.
"The Swiss National Bank will continue to take account of the exchange rate situation formulating its monetary policy in future. If necessary, it will therefore remain active in the foreign exchange market to influence monetary conditions."
In December the central bank dropped interest rates to minus 0.25 per cent