Investors flock to safe havens after shock SNB move

Asian equities sold off overnight and investors rushed for safe havens as markets continued to react to a shock move by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) yesterday to remove the Swiss franc's peg to the euro.

The euro suffered its largest one-day fall against the Swiss franc in history as the SNB suddenly abandoned its long-held pledge to keep the franc above 1.20 per euro. The move sent the currency markets into a tailspin, catching investors totally unawares.  Yesterday the euro moved well below parity against the franc, dropping almost 30% to trade as low as 0.854 before rallying to 1.033, a fall of 14%, while major Swiss stocks also suffered sharp falls.  In Asia, Japan's Nikkei fell 2.8%, later regaining some ground to close down 1.4%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost 0.5%. Saf...