THE RUPEE: Slight gains

rupee maintained rising trend against the dollar on the local money market on Saturday in the process of trading activity, dealers said.

OPEN MARKET RATES: The rupee picked up 10 paisas versus the dollar for buying and selling at Rs 154.60 and Rs 155.00 respectively, they said. The rupee also gained sharply against the euro for buying and selling at 170.00 and Rs 171.70 respectively, they said.

In the final US trade, the dollar gained on Friday after five straight days of losses, lifted by data showing the US economy created many more jobs than expected in November, backing the Federal Reserve's stance of keeping interest rates on hold after cutting them three times this year. Gains in the dollar were fairly modest despite the robust jobs number, however.

The greenback has been pummelled all week due to a slew of weaker-than-expected data in the US manufacturing and services sectors, with investors coming to grips with the reality that the economy is slowing down.

Friday's jobs report provided a respite from all the pessimism and from the continuing uncertainty over the status of US-China trade negotiations.

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Open Bid       Rs 154.60
Open Offer     Rs 155.00
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RUPEE IN LAHORE: The Pak rupee stayed weak and lost 45-paisa on buying side and 25-paisa on selling side in relation to the greenback in the local currency market on Saturday.

According to the currency dealers, the dollar resumed trading on a healthy note and registered gain following buyers' interest. At close of trading, the dollar ended higher at Rs 154.65 and 155.15 as its buying and selling rate against the overnight closing of Rs 154.20 and Rs 154.90, respectively.

Similarly, the rupee remained under pressure and depreciated its worth against the pound sterling. The pound's buying and selling rate improved from the day earlier closing of Rs 201.40 and Rs 202.30 to Rs 201.75 and Rs 203.00, respectively, the dealers said.

RUPEE IN ISLAMABAD AND RAWALPINDI: The rupee gained 20 paisa against the dollar at the open currency markets of Islamabad and Rawalpindi here on Saturday.

The dollar opened at Rs 155.20 (buying) and Rs 155.30 (selling) against last rate of Rs 155.40 (buying) and Rs 155.50 (selling).

It closed at Rs 155.20 (buying) and Rs 155.30 (selling).

The buying and selling rates of one tola of gold were Rs. 85,500 (selling) and Rs 85,200 (buying) in the local Sarafa (gold) markets of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.