The Swiss National Bank surprisingly raised interest rates at its meeting moments ago from -0.75% to -0.25%.

The bank’s interest statement stated that there were inflationary pressures that forced the bank to take the step of raising interest rates, stressing that more interest increases would be necessary in the future to achieve price stability.

Switzerland’s inflation rate reached 2.9% in May and is likely to remain at a high level for the time being.

The Swiss franc is trading at 0.9810 levels against the US dollar, with an increase of more than 150 points.