Thomas Jordan, Martin Schlegel, Antoine Martin: Introductory remarks by the Governing Board, Swiss National Bank news conference

Introductory remarks by Mr Thomas Jordan, Chairman of the Governing Board of the SNB, Mr Martin Schlegel, Vice Chairman of the Governing Board of the SNB, and Mr Antoine Martin, Member of the Governing Board of the SNB, at the Media News Conference of the Swiss National Bank, Zurich, 21 March 2024.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Central bank speech  | 
22 March 2024
by Thomas Jordan, Martin Schlegel and Antoine Martin
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  |  6 pages

Ladies and gentlemen

As Chairman of the Governing Board, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the news conference of the Swiss National Bank. I would also like to welcome all those who are joining us today online. I extend a special welcome to Antoine Martin. This is his first press conference as a Member of the Governing Board. After our introductory remarks, we will take questions from journalists as usual. Questions can also be asked by telephone.

Monetary policy decision

I will begin with our monetary policy decision. We have decided to lower the SNB policy rate by 0.25 percentage points to 1.5%. The change applies from tomorrow, 22 March 2024. Banks' sight deposits held at the SNB will be remunerated at the SNB policy rate up to a certain threshold, and at 1.0% above this threshold. We also remain willing to be active in the foreign exchange market as necessary.
The easing of our monetary policy has been made possible because the fight against inflation over the past two and a half years has been effective. For some months now, inflation has been back below 2% and thus in the range we equate with price stability. According to our new forecast, inflation is also likely to remain in this range over the next few years.
With our decision, we are taking into account the reduced inflationary pressure as well as the appreciation of the Swiss franc in real terms over the past year. The policy rate cut also supports economic activity. Today's easing thus ensures that monetary conditions remain appropriate.

We will continue to monitor the development of inflation closely. We will adjust our monetary policy again if necessary to ensure inflation remains within the range consistent with price stability over the medium term.