Sharp declines in travel-related expenditures helped push consumer prices down 0.2 percent in November compared to October when they declined 0.3 percent. Compared to their year ago levels, prices were unchanged.

The core inflation measure which excludes seasonal products, energy, and fuels fell 0.1 percent on November and rose 0.4 percent year-on-year. Heating oil prices gained 4.4 percent in November from a month ago.

Overnight stays in hotels were 7.1 percent cheaper in November than a month ago, while down 2.7 percent year-on-year. Further helping to subdue prices were fruits and vegetable prices which fell 18.8 percent month-on-month while those for new cars were down 1.2 percent month-on-month.

Overall prices for goods fell 0.3 percent from a month ago and were 1.6 percent lower than a year ago, with durable goods 0.4 percent less expensive than October while semi-durables rose 0.2 percent month-on-month. At the same time, costs for services fell 0.2 percent month-on-month while increasing 1.0 percent year-on-year.

Looking at domestic prices, those declined 0.2 percent during the reporting month and rose 0.4 percent year-on-year. Costs for imported goods fell 0.4 percent from the month before and 1.3 percent from a year ago, reflecting the strength of the Swiss currency.

It's a continuing storyline that there are no broad inflationary pressures in the economy, that gives the Swiss National Bank some policy scope in the face of a poorly performing economy in the third quarter. It remains to be seen if the SNB elects to move back to a negative interest rate stance at its next meeting.

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.