ZURICH, Dec 16 (Reuters) - The Swiss National Bank held interest rates on Thursday despite the economy's brisk recovery, as the euro zone debt crisis and a strong Swiss franc threaten to hit the export-dependent Alpine country.
The central bank said after its quarterly policy meeting that its target band for the 3-month Swiss franc LIBOR will remain at 0.00-0.75 percent. It will continue to aim to keep the LIBOR at 0.25 percent.
It said concerns about stability in the euro area had exacerbated financial market tensions which in turn had led to the Swiss franc appreciating.
If the tensions worsened, it could have a detrimental effect on the Swiss economy, the central bank said.
All 37 economists polled by Reuters had expected the central
bank would leave rates on hold, and the majority predicted the
first SNB rate hike in the third quarter 2011.
The Swiss economy has recovered more strongly than many other European countries from the global crisis.
While consumer and company investment spending helped the country to post robust growth over the summer, goods exports declined in the third quarter as the strong franc made products from Switzerland more expensive abroad.
The franc hit a record high against the euro ahead of the SNB meeting because investors piled money into the traditional safe haven as worries about the euro zone debt situation increased. It eased back in early trade on Friday. (Reporting by Sven Egenter, editing by Mike Peacock)