The forint is up 0.16% versus the euro from final quotes last Friday, after gaining 1.01% in the week before. It is up 1.71% from the end of last year, after it lost 6.12% last year, and 1.95% in 2013.

Wobbled by a correction on Wednesday, the Hungarian currencyʼs weekly advance remained slow versus the euro, but it still eked out a further gain on Friday on the back of the diving dollar. The forint gained some more against the dollar than the euro did.

Investors shunned the dollar, and returned to yield hunt in mass after the Fedʼs minutes, published late on Thursday, suggested the US central bank might keep its record low policy rate intact longer than previously thought.

Strengthening hopes for the Fedʼs patience drove investors out of first-rated government bonds into shares, but price falls of higher-yielding Hungarian sovereigns remained limited.

Central European countries, with fairly strong external financing positions, are not so much dependent on external inflows into government debt as most emerging economies are, which somewhat limits the beneficial impact of a US rate hike postponement on their currencies, analysts add.

The forint traded at 273.84 to the dollar, up from 276.29 in final quotes on Thursday. On Friday, it moved between 273.56, a nearly three-week high, and 276.47, after a four-day low at 280.36 Tuesday intraday.

It was quoted at 284.95 to the Swiss franc, up from 285.95 late Thursday. Its range on Friday was 284.54 to 286.06, after a seven-day low at 288.72 Tuesday intraday, and a twelve-day high at 284.24 also on Tuesday in late trades. Since its crash to an all-time low at 378.49 to the franc on January 15 when the Swiss central bank scrapped its cap of 1.20 to the euro, it reached the highest at 281.07 on February 26.