USD/CHF extends slide to fresh 7-week lows, closes in on 0.9000

• USD/CHF is falling for the seventh straight day on Tuesday.
• Consumer sentiment in Switzerland improved sharply in July.
• US Dollar Index stays in the red below 92.00.

The USD/CHF pair closed the first day of the week in the negative territory and extended its slide during the European trading hours on Monday. After touching its lowest level since mid-June at 0.9022, the pair seems to have gone into a consolidation phase and was last seen losing 0.27% at 0.9030. 

CHF capitalizes on upbeat sentiment data

Earlier in the day, the data from Switzerland showed that the general consumer confidence improved sharply in July with the Consumer Sentiment Index rising to its stronger level since July 2010 at 8. "Expectations of general economic growth, in particular, contributed to the strong improvement in consumer sentiment, the sub-index climbing to its highest value (48 points) since the survey began in 1972," the SECO noted in its publication and the CHF gather strength following the release of this report.

On the other hand, the greenback remains on the back foot and allows USD/CHF to preserve its bearish momentum. The US Dollar Index is currently losing 0.14% on the day at 91.93. 

Later in the session, June Factory Orders, IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index and July Total Vehicle Sales data will be featured in the US economic docket. In the meantime, major equity indexes remain on track to start the day in the positive territory, suggesting that the USD could have a hard time staging a rebound even if the data come in better than expectations.

Technical levels to watch for