ZURICH, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Switzerland's annual inflation rate held steady at 1.3% in July, in line with analysts' expectations, figures from the Federal Statistics Office showed on Friday.

Compared to the previous month, Swiss consumer prices fell by 0.2%, a reading which also matched the consensus forecast of a Reuters poll of analysts.

July was the 13th month in a row that Swiss prices have been within the 0-2% range targeted by the Swiss National Bank (SNB), which the central bank describes as price stability.

The SNB lowered interest rates to 1.25% in June, the second cut in 2024, saying underlying inflationary pressure had eased. The central bank also lowered its inflation forecasts, fueling analyst expectations of a further rate cut in September. (Writing by Dave Graham, Editing by Friederike Heine)