The Swiss central bank, which suffered heavy losses two years in a row, saw its profit rise in the first quarter to 58.8 billion Swiss francs (60 billion euros) under the effect of the rebound in the stock markets and of the decline of the franc.
The Swiss national bank (SNB), which had suspended its payments to the Confederation and the cantons in 2022 and 2023 following its losses, made a profit of 52.4 billion francs on its positions in foreign currencies (which include stocks and bonds) during the first trimester, she indicates in a press release.
A gain of 15.3 billion francs was made on equity securities and participation instruments while exchange gains amounted to 38 billion francs, detailed the monetary institution, compensating a loss of 4 billion francs on Interest-bearing securities and interest rate instruments.
The gold stock, which remained unchanged, for its part released a capital gain of 8.9 billion francs while the price of a kilogram of gold increased by 15.4% compared to the end of December, to close the quarter. 64,188 francs.
Its positions in Swiss francs, which mainly consist of interest applied to the assets that banks and financial institutions are obliged to entrust to it, recorded a loss of 2.4 billion francs, specifies the monetary institution which discloses each quarter evolution of its balance sheet for the sake of transparency.
To carry out its monetary policy, the SNB relies on a vast portfolio of reserves which notably include stocks and bonds. The evolution of its profit is, however, a sensitive issue in Switzerland because part of its profit is usually returned to the Confederation and the cantons.
But after a loss of 132.5 billion francs in 2022 and 3.2 billion in 2023, the BNS suspended its payments, complicating the budgetary choices of many cantons.
If this rebound in the first quarter may seem to bode well for the finances of the cantons, the BNS nevertheless started the year 2023 with a profit of 26.9 billion francs in the first quarter before seeing its results decline over the rest of the year. the year.