Ripple fell over three percent, or $0.01 on Thursday after a hiatus from losses yesterday, with prices heading for a 15% loss this week, the first in six weeks amid a crypto selloff. 

As of 08:32 GMT, Ripple shed 3.22% to $0.43879, with a session-high at $0.4571, and a low at $0.43436, with Ripple's market value now receding to $17.59 billion. 

Ripple erased the gains of the last four weeks after an 8% slump last Tuesday, the worst such drop since October 11 amid a violent selloff storm that led to an exodus of cash and investments from the crypto market, with analysts blaming a hrad fork (split) for Bitcoin Cash that instigated all uncertainty. 

Last week, International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde suggested on global central banks and their respective governments the possibility of issuing their own digital currencies to make them more stable and controlled and accessible for all sectors instead of the current mayhem in that market. 

Lagarde believes that payments through digital currencies would be instant, safe, and cheap, and while they would be anonymous, central banks will keep a database of all payments, cutting out fraud and money laundering operations. 

The Path of Ripple

It's worth mentioning that Ripple was first launched on March 7, 2015, to start trading at $0.015, with the virtual currency losing nearly two thirds of its value by early 2016 to $0.0059, before rising 5% during 2016 to $0.0063, and then skyrocketing 28,000% to $1.748 by the end of 2017, before marking unprecedented highs in January at $3.30, then losing up to 90% of value on a violent selloff wave that stormed crypto assets this year. 

Ripple then reversed nearly 80% higher in only a few days in September on positive news for the cryptocurrency and its standing between major financial institutions, before joining a mass decline in the crypto market in recent days and weeks. 

Oil futures fell over one percent as the dollar index backed off January 2017 highs for the sixth session out of nine, as the US market shuts down for the Thanksgiving holiday, and ahead of OPEC's monthly meeting tomorrow Friday. 

As of 06:40 GMT, US crude futures due in January fell 1.43% to $53.85 a barrel, while Brent January futures slumped 1.48% to $62.54 a barrel, as the dollar index shed 0.24% to 96.48 away from early 2017 highs. 

Saudi oil minister Khalid Al Falih said no cuts to output were applied in November, adding it was actually bigger than October levels, at 10.7 million bpd. 

He expects demand on Saudi oil to fall in January, with the country responding in time for that decline. 

US Inventory Build 

The Energy Information Administration reported a build of 4.9 million barrels in US crude stocks in the week ending November 16, compared to a 10.3 million increase in the previous reading, while analysts estimated a 2.5 million increase, with total stocks now up to 446.9 million barrels, making them 6% above five-year averages. 

Gasoline stocks fell 1.3 million barrels, still 6% above averages, while distillate stocks, including heating fuel, fell 0.1 million, making them 7% below averages. 

Recent reports showed South Korea intends to resume imports of Iranian oil next year after getting exempted from US sanctions on Iranian oil alongside seven other countries, including India, Japan, Turkey, Italy, Greece, and Taiwan. 

Russian energy minister Alexander Novak said no decision has been taken yet on whether to continue the current deal of cutting output by 1.8 million bpd until late 2018 in cooperation with OPEC. 

Novak said Russia plans to sign a partnership agreement with OPEC, with the issue scheduled for discussion at the December 6 meeting in Vienna. 

Otherwise, International Energy Agency Fatih Birol warned that a decision by major producers to cut output could have a negative impact on markets, while noting that US exemptions from Iran sanctions were broader than expected, leading to a drop in prices. 

US President Donald Trump recently called on Saudi Arabia and OPEC to not cut output, believing that prices should be lower based on demand and supply foundation, which came weeks after the US reinstated sanctions on Iranian oil exports, with the Trump's administration counting back then on Saudi Arabia to fill Iran's void in the market.

Iran Sanctions 

Otherwise, as US sanctions went into effect on Iranian oil exports starting November 4, eight countries were granted waivers for 180 days, mainly China, India, South Korea, Japan, Italy, Greece, Taiwan, and Turkey, already the largest importers of Iranian oil. 

In Russia, output rose to a new record of 11.41 million bpd in October, after averaging 11.36 million bpd in September. 

US Oil Rig Count 

Baker Hughes, a US oil services company, reported an increase of 2 in the rig count last week, the second such increase in a row.  

The total count has now reached 888 rigs, the highest since March 2015.

Euro tilted higher in American trade against the greenback, following earlier data and developments from the euro zone while the US market shuts down for the Thanksgiving holiday.

As of 05:18 GMT, EUR/USD rose 0.20% to 1.1407, with a session-high at 1.1434, and a low at 1.1382. 

The European Central Bank just released the minutes of its October 25 meeting, at which policymakers voted to hold the refinancing rater at zero and the deposit rate at minus 0.4%, while carrying on the quantitative easing program at 15 billion euros a month until the end of the year. 

Earlier euro zone data showed an index tracking consumer sentiment fell to minus 4 in November from minus 3. 

Otherwise, European Council President Donald Tusk said initial agreement has been reached between EU and UK negotiations on the future relations after Brexit. 

European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker is scheduled to meet with UK Prime Minister Theresa May in Brussels tomorrow, while some issues remain hanging however, especially Spain's opposition to how Gibraltar was handled in the draft agreement. 

On another note, the German financial ministry warned in its monthly economic report of the risks of economic slowdown, caused partly by a shortage of skilled labor and lower water levels that could hinder transportation and supplies. 

Moving to the Italian budget crisis, Italian Prime Minister Gisueppe Conte said his government will present the budget to the Parliament, while asserting no plans to reverse course despite high EU opposition to the deficit targets. 

Gold futures tilted lower away from November 7 highs for the second session, while the dollar index fell off January 2017 highs for the sixth session out of nine, as the US market shuts down for the Thanksgiving holiday. 

As of 04:53 GMT, gold futures due in December shed 0.02% to $1,227.80 an ounce away from two-week highs, while the dollar index slipped 0.20% to 96.52 away from early 2017 highs. 

World Trade Organization Secretary General Roberto Azevêdo warned that rising trade limitations represent a real threat on the global economy that requires solutions reached by the political will of the G20 leaders. 

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the sides of the G20 summit in Argentina, with markets hoping for a breakthrough in trade. 

Yesterday, US President Donald Trump said he wanted the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, after lopping severe criticism of the bank recently for its policy tightening path, considering it a grave threat for his economic agenda. 

Finally, Gold holdings at SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed investment fund, rose 2.06 tonnes on Wednesday to a total of 762.92 tonnes, after prices snapped the longest monthly losing streak since 1996 with a profit in October.