Consumer prices rose a marginal 0.1 percent in May from the previous month while falling 0.1 percent from their year-ago levels. Prices excluding fresh and seasonal products also were 0.1 percent higher on the month, but rose 0.5 percent year-on-year.

Pushing the monthly rate higher were rental costs which were up 0.5 percent. The Swiss were anxious to get away in May, which pushed international package holidays up 2.7 percent.

Prices for domestic products rose 0.2 percent month-on-month and 0.6 percent from a year ago, while imported product prices were flat on the month and down 2.4 percent from a year ago.

A sometime bellwether for economic stress, used car prices fell 0.4 percent on the month and 4.7 percent from a year ago. Falling prices for semi- and durable goods fell 0.3 and 0.2 percent, respectively, in May from a month ago, which could entice cautious consumers to open their wallets.

In combing through the details, broad price pressures are not evident. The Swiss National Bank gathers later this month for its quarterly policy meeting where, in addition to its decision interest rates, it will also publish its latest inflation forecasts.

The consumer price index (CPI) is an average measure of the level of the prices of goods and services bought for the purpose of consumption by Swiss households. Monthly and annual changes in the CPI provide widely used measures of inflation. The policy target measure for the Swiss National Bank (SNB), the annual CPI rate can be distorted by swings in prices amongst the more volatile subsectors and the CPI excluding fresh food and energy is used as a better guide to underlying short-term trends. Although not a member of the Eurozone, a harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP), measured according to Eurostat's procedures, is also published alongside the CPI.

The consumer price index is the most widely followed indicator of inflation. An investor who understands how inflation influences the markets will benefit over those investors that do not understand the impact. Inflation is an increase in the overall prices of goods and services. The relationship between inflation and interest rates is the key to understanding how indicators such as the CPI influence the markets- and your investments. Inflation (along with various risks) basically explains how interest rates are set on everything from loans to notes and bonds. As the rate of inflation changes and as expectations on inflation change, the markets adjust interest rates. The effect ripples across stocks, bonds, commodities, and your portfolio, often in a dramatic fashion. By tracking inflation, whether high or low, rising or falling, investors can anticipate how different types of investments will perform. Over the long run, the bond market will rally (fall) when increases in the CPI are small (large). The equity market rallies with the bond market because low inflation promises low interest rates and is good for profits.