Over the weekend, the euro, the pound sterling and the dollar rose. Meanwhile, the Russian ruble reached its lowest level in seven weeks.

Sterling rose by a fraction against the dollar on Friday ahead of key U.S. employment data. The pound was up 0.1% against the dollar at $1.2197, and virtually stable against the euro at 86.50 pence at 09:48 GMT. It has weakened against the dollar in recent weeks, as a stronger than expected US economy has led to bets that American interest rates could rise further

For its part, the dollar headed for a 12-week streak of gains on Friday. The dollar index, which reached its highest level in 11 months at the start of the week (107.34), stood at 106.43, but remains on track for 12 consecutive weeks. The greenback was also heading for a series of record gains of 12 consecutive weeks against the euro

In addition, the Russian ruble weakened on Friday and fell to a low of more than seven weeks above 101 against the dollar, under pressure from lower oil prices and the reduction in the supply of foreign currency by exporters at the beginning of the month. The ruble was down 0.6% at 06:45 GMT against the dollar at 101.02, after touching 101.50, its lowest level since August 14, it lost 0.6% to trade at 106.40 against the euro and lost 0.6% against the yuan to 13.81.

For its part, the euro was heading for about ten weeks of record decline against the dollar on Friday. Slightly higher than Tuesday's 10-month low of $1,0448. The common European currency was down 0.16% to $1.0533, slightly higher than Tuesday's 10-month low of $1.0448, but still poised for another 0.2% weekly drop, making this series the longest since