The SNB kept its policy rate unchanged at 0%, as expected by markets and a Reuters poll, helped by a small uptick in inflation in recent months.

The decision marks the first hold in seven meetings by the SNB, after it started reducing borrowing costs in March 2024.

SNB Chairman Martin Schlegel has repeatedly said there were high hurdles to reintroducing a negative interest rate, a policy which sparked concerns from savers and pension funds when used from December 2014 to September 2022.

“Inflationary pressure is virtually unchanged compared to the previous quarter. Monetary policy helps to keep inflation within the range consistent with price stability and supports economic development,” the SNB said in a statement.

The announcement was the SNB’s first monetary policy decision since Trump slapped a 39% tariff on Swiss goods exports to the United States in August.

The import duty, one of the highest under Trump’s global trade reset, threatens to cause major damage to Switzerland’s export orientated economy, which has the United States as one of its biggest markets.

Meanwhile, The Swiss economic outlook has deteriorated due to “significantly higher U.S. tariffs,” Swiss National Bank governing board member Petra Tschudin said on Thursday.

“The outlook for Switzerland remains uncertain,” said Tschudin in remarks prepared for a press conference after the SNB’s rates decision.

“The main risks are U.S. trade policy and global economic developments.”