The leu gained 0.16% against the euro, and the central bank set the leu’s reference rate versus the euro at 4.4935 units.
Against the US dollar, the leu’s indicative lost 3.25% on the day to 3.998 units, a new record low, after the euro depreciated Thursday and Friday against the dollar on international markets following the announcement of European Central Bank on the launch of an “expanded asset purchase program”.
European Central Bank will launch in March an expanded asset-purchase program of EUR60 billion a month through September 2016.
At around 1:00 pm, on the local market, the leu traded at 4.4935/4.497 to the euro.
The Swiss franc touched record highs on the Romanian market, after it gained almost 30% against the euro last Friday, following Swiss National Bank’s decision to scrap the minimum exchange rate ceiling against the euro.
In the money market, overnight rates were at 0.09%-0.48%, from 0.05%-0.42% Thursday.