Litecoin titled higher on Thursday away from June 2017 lows for the fourth session out of five on limited short-covering after sustaining recent heavy losses. 

As of 05:46 GMT, Litecoin rose 0.09% to $35.132, with an intraday high at $35.272, and a low at $33.475. 

Litecoin is still heading for the seventh monthly loss in a row, marking the longest such streak since the first half of 2015 after tumbling 26% last week, the worst weekly performance since March. 

Cryptocurrencies are experiencing an overall exodus of cash and investments, instigated partly by uncertainty surrounding Bitcoin Cash, which led the decline last week. 

Last Wednesday, 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 Litecoin

Litecoin was first publicly offered in the first half of 2013 at only $3, marking record lows at below $1 in early 2015 before taking off on its long and spotted journey higher. 

The cryptocurrency pierced $100 for the first time on November 29, 2017, before scaling a record high at $370.78 on December 19, and plummeting back below $100 on June 12, before marking 17-month lows on Sunday at $27.726.  

Senaat, one of the state-owned holding companies in the UAE, announced it has successfully issued AED1.1 billion ($300 million) worth of international Sukuk.

The Sukuk was issued through a fixed rate senior unsecured US dollar denominated sukuk with a seven-year tenor, it added

The issue follows a series of investor meetings which took place in Europe and Asia, as well as in the UAE.

The new Sukuk, which will be dual listed on the London and Abu Dhabi Stock Exchanges, had strong investor demand both locally and internationally, enabling the issue to be 10 times oversubscribed, according to the company's statement.

The Sukuk was competitively priced, with a fixed income of 4.76% per year, underpinned by Moody’s “A3” which was issued last week, and Fitch’s “A” credit ratings.

These ratings are the first to be assigned to Senaat by Moody’s and Fitch and have also been assigned to the sukuk itself.

In assigning these ratings, both agencies noted Senaat’s role as a main player in driving forward Abu Dhabi’s diversified manufacturing industry, underlining the group’s position as a key pillar in the implementation of the Emirate’s 2030 Economic Vision.

They pointed to Senaat’s financial strength, profitability and ability to self-finance its capital and operational expenditure, as well as the diversified and stable flow of dividends from its portfolio companies.

Through issuing the Sukuk, Senaat aims to enhance its financial flexibility and ability to access capital markets. The proceeds from the sukuk issue will be allocated to refinance part of Senaat’s existing group debt, to enhance the company's overall capital structure and cash flow levels.

Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, UAE’s Mubadala and Saudi Arabia are in talks to buy a 16 percent stake in Russian oil drilling firm Eurasia Drilling, the head of the Russian fund was quoted as saying by Reuters on Wednesday.

The deal is awaiting approval from a government commission, Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said at a conference in Moscow.

Mubadala Investment was created in 2017 from the merger between International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and Mubadala Development Company. Today, Mubadala Investment Company operates across a diverse portfolio spanning more than 30 countries globally.

Silver futures tilted lower in Asian trade while the dollar index slipped from November 13 highs for another session, ahead of US housing and labor data later today. 

As of 05:43 GMT, silver futures due in March inched down 0.07% to $14.45 an ounce, while the dollar index shed 0.12% to 96.67 away from two-week highs. 

Now investors await US data on personal income, expected with a 0.4% increase last month, while personal income is also expected with a 0.4% increase, up from 0.2% in September. 

US unemployment claims for the ending November 24 are estimated to have slipped to 221 thousand, while continuing claims are expected with a 3K increase to 1.671 million in the week ending November 17. 

US pending home sales are estimated with a monthly 0.8% increase, and a yearly 2.8% drop, compared to a 3.4% drop in September.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivered a speech yesterday titled "The Federal Reserve's Framework for Monitoring Financial Stability" at The Economic Club of New York, where he noted how interest rates are still below neutral levels, while adding that gradual rate hikes represent the best balance between the risks of accelerating or slowing down the pace of policy tightening. 

Markets also await an anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Argentina, with hopes a breakthrough might occur on the trade war between the world's two largest economies.