By that point, tempers were already running high among Swiss parliamentarians. Several representatives from the Centre and the left-green bloc had singled out Swiss gold refiners as scapegoats for the failed tariff negotiations with the United States and were trying to outdo each other with their demands; finews.com reported on this.

The Swiss franc rises after President Trump said Monday he would not impose tariffs on imported gold. As a major gold refining center, tariffs on gold would have represented a further blow for Switzerland after the country was hit with 39% U.