USD/CHF hits two-week high amid sustained USD buying, risk-off mood seems to cap gains

• USD/CHF gains traction for the sixth straight day and climbs to over a two-week high on Monday.
• Hawkish Fed expectations continue to underpin the USD and remain supportive of the move up.
• Recession fears, the risk-off mood benefits the safe-haven CHF and seems to cap gains for the pair.

The USD/CHF pair prolongs its bullish move witnessed over the past one week or so and edges higher for the sixth successive day on Monday. Spot prices climb to over a two-week high during the first half of the European session, though bulls seem struggling to capitalize on the move beyond the 0.9600 mark.

The US dollar buying remains unabated on the first day of a new week and turns out to be a key factor that continues to act as a tailwind for the USD/CHF pair. In fact, the USD Index climbs to its highest level since mid-July and remains well supported by hawkish Fed expectations. The recent comments by several Fed officials suggest that the US central bank will stick to its aggressive policy tightening path.

Investors, however, remain divided over the size of the next rate hike at the September meeting. Hence, Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday will be looked upon for clues about the central bank's policy outlook. Traders would further take cues from this week's important US macro releases, which will influence the USD and provide a fresh directional impetus to the USD/CHF pair.

In the meantime, growing worries about a global economic downturn continue to weigh on investors' sentiment. This is evident from the prevalent risk-off environment, which offers support to the safe-haven Swiss franc and seems to cap gains for the USD/CHF pair. The mixed fundamental backdrop warrants caution for bullish traders and positioning for any further gains amid absent relevant US economic data on Monday.

Technical levels to watch