The Hungarian forint weakened for a third consecutive day against both the euro and the dollar on Thursday, with EUR/HUF trading around 366 and USD/HUF around 327.6 during the session. Investors pointed to unease over the French bond market and rising tension in oil markets, while the forint’s slide was also linked by some analysts to uncertainty over when Hungary might enter ERM-2. Our own market data put EUR/USD at $1.1209 as of 12:42 GMT.
French bonds weigh on sentiment
The 10-year French government bond yield rose above 5 percent, and on Thursday it exceeded the comparable US Treasury yield for the first time since 2013. Oil prices also gained more than 2 percent, adding to the cautious mood.
Speculators remained net short the euro. CFTC data for the week to 13 October showed net short positions of 137,573 contracts, up from 99,332 a week earlier.
Euro adoption timing in focus
Some analysts said the forint’s weakness may also reflect uncertainty about Hungary’s route into the eurozone. Markets reportedly price successful euro adoption in the early 2030s.
Elsewhere, the Swiss National Bank held its policy rate at zero at its September meeting. It judged that safe-haven demand for the franc after the Middle East war had eased, and no longer needed to keep the option of FX intervention open.
Source: Swiss National Bank | Data: Swissquote · CFTC
