The Parity of The Euro And The Swiss Franc Amid Fears of Stagflation

The European single currency briefly fell below par with the Swiss franc for the first time in seven years on Monday and settled at a 22-month low against the US dollar as rising crude oil prices fueled fears that stagflation could sweep across Europe.

The war in Ukraine and harsh international sanctions imposed on Moscow have sent Russian assets into sharp decline, while prices for Russia’s exports such as precious metals and oil and gas have soared at a time when the global economy is already under inflationary pressures.

Europe is the most affected region because it imports up to 40 percent of its natural gas consumption from Russia, and the single currency has become increasingly inversely linked to oil prices.

In early trading in London on Monday, the European euro fell as much as 0.5 percent to $1.0874, close to $1.0822 hit in Asian trading and its lowest since May 2020.

The euro has fallen about 4 percent since Russia launched what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine, and is no longer far from testing its 2020 low of $1.0636.

Oil prices rose again on Monday as fears of a European and US embargo on Russian oil and a delay in completing Iran nuclear talks pushed them to their highest level since 2008.

The euro also fell to its lowest level against the Japanese currency, recording 124.39 yen, and touched the lowest level since mid-2016 against the pound sterling at 82.01 pence.

Against the Australian currency, the euro lost more than ten percent in about a month.