USD/CHF jumps to 0.9235 area, closer to one-month tops set on Monday

• Expectations for an eventual tapering move by the Fed underpinned the greenback.
• COVID-19 woes did little to benefit the safe-haven CHF or hinder the momentum.
• Investors now eye Thursday’s US macro data for some meaningful trading impetus.

A sudden pickup in the USD demand pushed the USD/CHF pair to fresh daily lows, around the 0.9230-35 region during the first half of the European session.

The pair caught aggressive bids on Thursday and built on the previous day's late rebound from weekly lows amid the emergence of some fresh buying around the US dollar. Expectations about an imminent Fed taper announcement acted as a tailwind for the greenback, which, in turn, was seen as a key factor that provided a goodish lift to the USD/CHF pair.

Despite signs of easing inflationary pressures in the US, investors still believe that the Fed would begin rolling back its massive pandemic-era stimulus later this year. This, along with a modest uptick in the US Treasury bond yields, further underpinned the USD and lifted the USD/CHF pair back closer to one-month tops touched earlier this week.

Meanwhile, worries about the fast-spreading Delta variant and a global economic slowdown did little to benefit the safe-haven Swiss franc, or hinder the intraday bullish move. It will now be interesting to see if the USD/CHF pair is able to capitalize on the momentum or witness some selling at higher levels as traders now look forward to the US macro data.

Thursday's US economic docket highlights the release of monthly Retail Sales, Philly Fed Manufacturing Index and the usual Weekly Initial Jobless Claims. This, along with the US bond yields, could influence the USD. Traders might further take cues from the broader market risk sentiment to grab some short-term opportunities around the USD/CHF pair.

Technical levels to watch