ZURICH, Jan 27 - The Swiss franc was a touch softer against the dollar in early Tuesday trading after robust U.S. housing data boosted Wall Street to a more than 2-1/2 year high on Monday, pulling the greenback higher in its wake. "Primarily driven by strong U.S. equities the currency pair managed to breach important resistances," said UBS in its daily markets note. The dollar firmed to 1.2553/58 francs by 0635 GMT, from 1.2452/57 francs late on Monday in Europe, while the euro marked time at 1.5657/62 francs after 1.5655/60. But the dollar was unlikely to run away on the upside in view of concerns about the current account gap and ahead of the G7 finance ministers in Florida on February 6-7. U.S. fourth-quarter GDP data will be a focus on Friday. Switzerland's leading indicator, signalling economic trends 6-9 months ahead, is due on Wednesday and expected to confirm the economy is heading out of a double-dip recession.
However, expectations of a first-quarter interest rate are fading. Swiss National Bank chief Jean-Pierre Roth speaks on Thursday and he is expected to reiterate the SNB is not in a rush to tighten monetary policy given a mild inflation outlook. Last week, Roth declined to comment specifically on recent forex developments as the greenback hovered just above 76-month lows against the franc.//