2019.02.2804:31:00UTC+00Swiss Franc Higher As Trump-Kim Summit Ends Without Any Deal

The Swiss franc strengthened against its major opponents in early European deals on Thursday amid risk aversion, as Trump-Kim summit ended earlier than scheduled without a deal, triggering demand of safe-haven assets.

White House announced that the summit ended early without a signing ceremony as Trump was not willing to end "strong" U.S. sanctions on North Korea.

"Basically they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety and we couldn't do that," Trump told. "They were willing to denuke a large portion of the areas we wanted, but we couldn't give up all the sanctions for that."

Sentiment dampened as weak Chinese data reinforced fears that the world's second-largest economy is losing momentum.

China's manufacturing sector contracted for a third consecutive month in February, with a manufacturing PMI score of 49.2.

Data from the Zurich-based KOF Swiss Economic Institute showed that an indicator of Switzerland's future economic performance declined for a fifth consecutive month in February and at a sharp rate, suggesting that the economy is set for some slowdown in the coming months.

The KOF Economic Barometer fell to 92.4 from January's 96.2, which was revised from 95 reported initially. Economists had expected the reading to remain unchanged at 95.

The currency has been trading higher against its major opponents in the Asian session.

The franc hit a 3-day high of 1.1345 against the euro, from a low of 1.1388 hit at 7:30 pm ET. The franc is seen finding resistance around the 1.12 level.

The Swiss currency rose to 0.9965 against the dollar and 1.3234 against the pound, off its early lows of 1.0015 and 1.3330, respectively. The next likely resistance for the franc is seen around 0.98 against the dollar and 1.29 against the pound.

The franc appreciated to a 3-day high of 111.14 versus the yen, after falling to 110.75 at 7:00 pm ET. Next key resistance for the franc is seen around the 113.00 level.

Looking ahead, at 8:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Governor Richard Clarida will speak at the National Association for Business Economics Policy Conference, in Washington DC.

Canada current account data for the fourth quarter and industrial product price index for January, U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended February 23, advanced GDP data for the fourth quarter and Chicago PMI for February are scheduled in the New York session.