Significant minus Swiss stock market on the decline again

The Swiss stock exchange starts trading on Friday with another significant drop. All major stocks recorded losses.

Following the Fed's interest rate decision on Wednesday, the SMI lost ground again on Friday. On Friday morning, the stock market slipped back into negative territory, with the SMI currently down almost 1 percent.

At the start of trading, all SMI stocks are recording losses. Some stocks lose almost 2 percent. Market participants are still digesting the Fed's interest rate forecast, according to reports on the market on Friday.

Chief economist explains stock market slumpWill things soon start to pick up again after the crash?

The leading Swiss index had already lost over 2 percent on Thursday following the announcements from the USA. The SMI is currently at almost the same level as in January and has lost considerable ground in recent weeks.

US stock market stabilizes

As expected, the US Federal Reserve lowered the key interest rate again by 0.25 percentage points on Wednesday. However, it also lowered its expectations for further interest rate hikes. This caught investors on the wrong foot and sent US equities and bond markets plummeting.

The Dow Jones slumped by 2.6 percent on Wednesday and the Nasdaq technology exchange even plummeted by 3.6 percent. Share prices stabilized somewhat on Thursday. After the records that have been repeatedly set since the beginning of November, many investors on the financial market fled risk assets.

The US Federal Reserve had predicted fewer interest rate cuts for the coming year than previously due to stubbornly high inflation. At the same time, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell emphasized that it was still too early to include the economic measures announced by future US President Donald Trump in the predictions. "It's very premature to try to draw any conclusions," Powell said with regard to the far-reaching tariffs the Republican is threatening.