Silver prices declined sharply in both local and global markets during Thursday’s trading session, pressured by profit-taking, a stronger U.S. dollar, and easing geopolitical tensions, according to a report issued by the Safe Haven Center.
The report said that the price of 999-fineness silver fell by around EGP 22 to EGP 152 per gram, while silver prices on global exchanges rose by about $13, with the ounce trading near $77. The price of 925-fineness silver reached approximately EGP 141 per gram, while 800-fineness silver stood at around EGP 122, and the silver pound remained stable at EGP 1,128.
Silver prices retreated amid a broader sell-off across metals markets, driven by liquidation by dollar-based companies and weaker demand from China. Spot silver prices fell by nearly 15% at the start of U.S. trading.
Following a record-breaking rally in which prices rose at an unsustainably fast pace, silver has now dropped by more than one-third from its all-time high recorded on January 29, marking one of the sharpest corrective moves in recent years.
Analysts attributed the steep decline to profit-taking after consecutive gains, combined with the strength of the U.S. dollar and easing geopolitical risks, which reduced demand for safe-haven assets. The U.S. dollar regained momentum in recent days, with the dollar index—measuring the greenback against six major currencies—rising 0.28% to 97.9 points.
In a note released on Wednesday, Goldman Sachs analysts said that the acceleration of silver’s decline triggered stop-loss orders, leading to a cascade of consecutive sell-offs in the market. They noted that silver’s correction was more severe than gold’s due to weaker liquidity.
Silver prices plunged sharply, erasing gains from the previous two sessions, while gold prices also retreated, as precious metals markets experienced what some described as a historic dislocation. At the same time, silver-backed exchange-traded funds saw outflows, as traders pointed to thin liquidity and heavy futures selling.
The widely used iShares Silver Trust ETF (SLV), which tracks silver prices in U.S. markets, declined in tandem with the drop in the metal, underscoring the rapid shift in market sentiment following last week’s record highs.
Carsten Menke of Julius Baer said that “the market has not yet stabilized,” while Ole Hansen of Saxo Bank pointed to “intense selling” once silver reached resistance around $90.50 per ounce—a level that typically attracts strong selling pressure.
Commodities broadly retreated as investors pulled back from the previous buying wave in physical assets, following Washington and Tehran’s agreement to hold talks, as well as a positive phone call between the U.S. and Chinese leaders, which helped ease geopolitical concerns.
Christopher Wong of OCBC Bank said losses were “compounding” amid tight liquidity, while a stronger dollar continued to pressure prices by making dollar-denominated commodities more expensive for buyers outside the United States, according to Reuters.
Risk assets weakened again, with global equities falling for a seventh consecutive session, while the U.S. dollar index hovered near a two-week high. In this environment, silver prices dropped by around 12% to trade near $77.3 per ounce before the opening of U.S. markets, while gold prices fell by about 2%, Reuters reported.
The shock in silver markets has now spread beyond futures trading and precious metals shops. Jewelry giant Pandora announced it would shift some designs to platinum plating to avoid extreme volatility in silver prices. “We are a jewelry brand, not a silver trader,” CEO Berit de Pablo-Barbier told Reuters.
Traders are facing challenges not only in identifying market direction, but also in coping with the speed of price moves. The relatively small size of the silver market and the prevalence of leveraged positions mean that any major economic headline can trigger forced selling, followed by further declines—especially amid thin liquidity across time zones.
That said, silver trading is not one-directional. A renewed rise in geopolitical tensions, a weaker dollar, or a shift toward expectations of interest rate cuts could quickly draw buyers back into the market. Silver has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to rebound strongly when expectations change.
Attention is now turning to upcoming U.S. economic data that could reshape interest rate and dollar expectations. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed that the January employment report, delayed by a brief government shutdown, will now be released on February 11. January’s Consumer Price Index is due on February 13, while the postponed December Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report is scheduled for release next Thursday.
Markets are also assessing the implications of Kevin Warsh’s nomination to head the Federal Reserve for future monetary policy. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he would not have nominated Warsh had he favored raising interest rates, adding in an interview with NBC News that he had “little doubt” the Federal Reserve would cut rates again—an outcome supportive of non-yielding assets such as precious metals.
Analysts at Standard Chartered said in a research note that gold—and by extension silver—is “likely to remain volatile until there is greater clarity on the outlook for monetary policy.” They added that some short-term volatility may stem from investors unwinding positions in exchange-traded products, but emphasized that “structural drivers remain intact, and we continue to expect a resumption of the upward trend over the medium term.”
Silver has traditionally been more volatile than gold due to the smaller size and lower liquidity of its market. However, the latest swings have been particularly striking in both scale and speed, as price movements were amplified by heavy speculative flows and a decline in over-the-counter trading.
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