According to UBS, the SNB’s financial result in the fourth quarter was aided by a higher gold price, a stronger US dollar and higher stock markets.
Keystone-SDA
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is expected to make a net profit of CHF80 billion ($88.4 billion) in 2024, according to UBS.
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Economists at UBS say the SNB should earn a profit of CHF15-20 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024. This should take total profit for the year to between CHF77.5 billion and CHF82.5 billion, according to a study published on Monday.
According to UBS, the SNB’s financial result in the fourth quarter was aided by a higher gold price, a stronger US dollar and higher stock markets. The rise in bond yields, on the other hand, weighed down the result.
Distribution ‘very likely’
Financial distributions from the SNB to the federal government and cantons are now “very likely”, UBS experts note. The SNB would first have to cover last year’s balance sheet loss of CHF53 billion and make allocations to currency reserves. But this should still leave a balance sheet profit of CHF13-18 billion, they predict.
According to the agreement between the central bank and the finance ministry, the federal government and the cantons would be entitled to a distribution of CHF3 billion in the event of a balance sheet profit of between CHF10-20 billion. There were no pay-outs over the two past years.
The SNB will publish the final result for 2024 on January 9.
Adapted from German by DeepL/sb
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