The Swiss National Bank has posted a consolidated loss of 1.7 billion francs for the first quarter of this year.

Losses on foreign currency positions amounted to 2.6 billion francs.

Gold conversely saw a valuation gain of 0.8 billion francs.

According to the central bank the strong franc hurt foreign currency results, as it rallied against the euro, dollar and the yen.

In a statement the bank said the strong fluctuations are normal, adding that only provisional conclusions could be drawn on its full year result.