Silver pulled back from a record high as investors took profits after a blistering rally and as the US refrained from imposing import tariffs on critical minerals.
The white metal fell as much as 7.3% on Thursday before recovering much of the loss later in the session. Prices had surged by more than 20% over the previous four sessions, reaching an all-time high of $93.75 on Wednesday.
US President Donald Trump stopped short of imposing sweeping tariffs on critical mineral imports, including silver and platinum, saying he would instead pursue bilateral negotiations and floated the idea of price floors. The decision followed a months-long review into whether foreign shipments posed a threat to US national security.
Fears that tariffs would be imposed have kept some supplies, including silver, in US warehouses. That contributed to a global short squeeze last year and has continued to support prices into 2026.
Trump’s decision “suggests the administration will take a more surgical approach in making future decisions,” Daniel Ghali, a senior commodity strategist at TD Securities, said in a note. That “significantly alleviates the fear of a broad-based approach that could have inadvertently impacted the underlying bars that underscore benchmark metals prices.”
About 434 million ounces of silver are held in warehouses linked to the Comex futures exchange in New York, roughly 100 million more than a year ago, when tariff-related trade disruptions intensified.
While those inventories could help ease tightness in other markets, “there is likely to be some sclerosis in any silver movement out of the US,” according to Rhona O’Connell, an analyst at StoneX Group Inc. She noted that the white metal remains on the list of critical minerals that could be targeted by future trade measures.
Silver outpaced gold last year, rising nearly 150%, as some investors rotated into the metal after its yellow counterpart became too expensive. It has also benefited from strong industrial demand — particularly from the solar sector — while a speculative buying frenzy in China has added to upward momentum in recent weeks.
The medium-term outlook for silver remains “firmly constructive, underpinned by supply shortfalls, industrial consumption and spillover demand from gold,” said Christopher Wong, a strategist at Oversea-Chinese Banking Group. However, “the velocity of recent moves warrants some near-term caution.”
Gold and silver benefited from a broad rush into commodities this week that pushed precious metals — along with tin and copper — to record highs. The Trump administration’s renewed pressure on the Federal Reserve has buoyed prices and revived the so-called ‘sell America’ trade. Meanwhile, the US’s capture of Venezuela’s leader, repeated threats to seize Greenland and tensions surrounding Iran have added to haven demand.
Thin liquidity and a surge in investor demand have left silver prone to sharp swings in recent weeks, putting pressure on traders’ risk limits. That volatility can become self-sustaining, as rapid price moves trigger forced selling or short covering.
“Much of what traders see on the screen reflects forced flows, margin dynamics, option hedging and short covering rather than genuine supply-and-demand price discovery,” Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank AS, wrote in a social media post. “In this environment, technical levels lose reliability, stops are easily triggered and even correct macro views struggle to survive short-term noise.”
Silver fell 2.5% to $90.79 an ounce as of 1 p.m. in London. Gold declined 0.3% to $4,615.01. Platinum and palladium also fell. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was steady.
Gold’s rally has legs beyond January, according to the latest Markets Pulse survey. While silver and copper have hit similar milestones, there are signs that flows into these metals are wavering as investors weigh the longevity of supply constraints.
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