SWITZERLAND’S central bank is still ready to step into currency markets if needed to rein in the Swiss franc, policymaker Fritz Zurbruegg told a newspaper, calling the franc “strongly overvalued” despite its recent dip.

    “We are ready to intervene if it will be necessary from a monetary policy perspective,” Zurbruegg, vice chairman of the Swiss National Bank (SNB), told Finanz und Wirtschaft in an interview published Saturday.

    “We made this clear for example after announcement of the referendum (on potential bailout terms) in Greece as there were increased safe-haven flows of funds into the franc.”

    The SNB gave rare confirmation in June that it had intervened to weaken a franc whose strength has hamstrung Switzerland’s export-reliant economy.

    The SNB in January abandoned efforts to keep the euro above 1.20 francs, sending the Swiss currency soaring. The euro now trades around 1.0780 francs, its strongest since February but still below the level the SNB once sought to defend.

    At its last policy meeting in June, the SNB kept its target range for three-month Libor rates at -1.25 to -0.25 percent and a 0.75 percent charge on some cash deposits.(SD-Agencies)