THE RUPEE: Mixed patterns

Divergent trend was witnessed on the money market on Monday as the rupee moved both ways against the dollar in the process of trading activity, dealers said.

INTER-BANK MARKET RATES: RATES: The rupee five paisas versus the dollar for buying and selling at Rs 154.20 and Rs 154.25, they said.

OPEN MARKET RATES: The rupee was unchanged in terms of the dollar for buying and selling at Rs 154.20 and Rs 154.50, they said. The rupee also did not move any side in terms of the euro for buying and selling at Rs 166.50 and Rs 168.00, they said.

In the first Asian trade, the euro was on the back foot on Monday, as concerns mounted about weakening economic growth in Europe at a time financial markets and policymakers fret about a new threat to the global economy from a fast spreading coronavirus in China.

The euro, which hit a 33-month low of $1.0817 on Friday, fetched $1.08385 in afternoon Asian trade on Monday, flat so far on the day but down 2.3% since the start of month - the worst performance among G10 currencies.

The German economy stagnated in the fourth quarter due to weaker private consumption and state spending, data showed on Friday, renewing fears of a recession at a time Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives are preoccupied with a search for a new leader.

The dollar was trading against the Indian rupee at Rs 71.430, the greenback was at 4.138 in terms of the Malaysian ringgit and the US currency was available at 6.976 in relation to the Chinese yuan.

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Open Bid       Rs 154.20
Open Offer     Rs 154.50
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Interbank Closing Rates: Interbank Closing Rates For Dollar on Monday.

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Bid Rate       Rs 154.20
Offer Rate     Rs 154.25
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RUPEE IN LAHORE: The Pak rupee appreciated its worth versus major currencies including the greenback and the British pound in the local currency market on Monday.

Following lack of buyers' interest in the market, the greenback could not sustain its earlier recoveries throughout the trading session and ended lower for buying and selling at Rs 153.50 and Rs 154.20 against the Saturday's closing rate of Rs 154.00 and Rs 154.40 respectively, local currency dealers said.

Similarly, the local currency also followed the same suit in relation to the pound sterling that was bought and sold at Rs 199.25 and Rs 200.60 against the previous closing trend of Rs 200.00 and Rs 200.70 respectively, they added.

RUPEE IN ISLAMABAD AND RAWALPINDI: The rupee remained firm against the dollar at the open currency markets of Islamabad and Rawalpindi here on Monday.

The dollar opened at Rs 154.50 (buying) and Rs 154.60 (selling) against same last rate.

It closed at Rs 154.50 (buying) and Rs 154.60 (selling). The buying and selling rates of one tola of gold were Rs 91,100 (selling) and Rs 91,000 (buying) in the local Sarafa (gold) markets of twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.