SNB keeps deposit charges and interest rates unchanged, signals franc intervention

[March 19, 2015] ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss National Bank kept a charge on some cash deposits steady at -0.75 percent on Thursday, but said it would remain active in foreign exchange markets to weaken what it sees as a "significantly overvalued" franc.

The central bank kept its target range for the three-month Libor at -1.25 to -0.25 percent, as analysts polled by Reuters had expected.

The SNB said it will continue to take account of the strong franc and its potential effect on inflation and economic developments in steering monetary policy.

"It will therefore remain active in the foreign exchange market, as necessary, in order to influence monetary conditions," the SNB said in a statement.

The SNB abandoned a formal cap on the value of the Swiss franc in January in the face of further easing from the European Central Bank, sending the currency crashing through its 1.20 per euro limit.

(Reporting By Katharina Bart and Alice Baghdjian; Editing by Maria Sheahan and Michael Shields)

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