Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) traded higher, with the cryptocurrency prices surging past the key $44,000 level on Thursday.

Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) also moved higher, trading above the key $2,200 mark this morning.

PancakeSwap (CRYPTO: CAKE) was the top gainer over the prior 24 hours, while Helium (CRYPTO: HNT) turned out to be the biggest loser.

U.S. initial jobless claims rose by 2,000 to 205,000 in the week ending Dec. 16, compared to market expectations of 215,000. The U.S. economy grew an annualized 4.9% in the third quarter, down from 5.2% in the second estimate, but matching the 4.9% reading in the advance estimate.

At the time of writing, the global crypto market cap rose to $1.65 trillion, recording a 24-hour gain of 2.4%. BTC was trading higher by 2.7% at $44,004 while ETH rose by around 1.9% to $2,251 on Thursday.

Here are the top ten crypto gainers and losers over the past 24 hours:

Gainers

PancakeSwap (CRYPTO: CAKE)
Price: $2.57
24-hour gain: 16.9%

NEAR Protocol (CRYPTO: NEAR)
Price: $3.37
24-hour gain: 16.3%

Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)
Price: $87.49
24-hour gain: 13.5%

Neo (CRYPTO: NEO)
Price: $14.61
24-hour gain: 12.9%

Fantom (CRYPTO: FTM)
Price: $0.4658
24-hour gain: 9.3%

Losers

Helium (CRYPTO: HNT)
Price: $8.05
24-hour drop: 12.3%

WOO Network (CRYPTO: WOO)
Price: $0.4386
24-hour drop: 5.4%

Injective (CRYPTO: INJ)
Price: $40.04
24-hour drop: 5.1%

Internet Computer (CRYPTO: ICP)
Price: $8.94
24-hour drop: 3.6%

Celestia (CRYPTO: TIA)
Price: $12.80
24-hour drop: 2.8%

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