Forint turns south on interbank market

The forint was trading at 314.93 to the euro late Friday on the interbank forex market, down from 314.20 late Thursday. At 314.06 to the euro early Friday, the forint moved between 313.90 and 315.20. It reached the lowest since January 6, 2012, at 317.29 Wednesday morning.
It is down 0.44% on the week in euro terms, after gaining exactly 0.44% over the previous week. It is down 5.62% year-to-date, after easing 1.95% last year.
The Hungarian currency was again under some pressure as the Fed's next week meeting draws closer. Many analysts expect a change of wording in the Fed's statement that could suggest a confirmation of market expectations for starting the tightening cycle next year sooner than previously thought.
The forint also felt the impact of statements of the prime minister and of the parliamentary leader of the governing Fidesz party, revealing that the probable total amount of mandatory refunds from banks to their household debtors will be higher than calculated earlier, and it will come with a ban on unilateral retail rate and fee hikes until spring 2016.
The forint traded at 243.23 to the dollar, down from 243.07 late Thursday. On Friday, it moved between 242.90 and 244.03. On Tuesday it hit the lowest since June 1, 2012, at 246.19.
It was quoted at 260.23 to the Swiss franc, down from 259.74 late Thursday. Its range on Friday was 259.44 to 260.75. Wednesday morning it fell to the lowest since January 5, 2012, at 262.74.
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