Silver Collapses, Down Nearly Half From Its January Record High

Silver has plunged nearly 47% from its January peak as rising inflation, higher interest-rate expectations and renewed Middle East tensions trigger another sharp selloff in one of 2026’s most volatile assets.

Silver prices fell sharply on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, sliding to around $64 per ounce on the COMEX exchange, their lowest level since late March and nearly 47% below the record high of $121.67 per ounce reached in January.

The latest decline caps a painful month for investors in what had been one of the market’s hottest trades.

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV), the largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund and one of the most popular ways for individual investors to gain exposure to silver, has fallen roughly 20% over the past month.

The immediate catalyst was a combination of geopolitical and economic pressures.

The United States launched fresh military strikes against Iran following the reported downing of an American helicopter, sending oil prices higher. At the same time, the latest Consumer Price Index report showed annual inflation rising to 4.2%, its highest level since April 2023, while core inflation climbed to a seven-month high.

Ordinarily, geopolitical uncertainty can support precious metals.

However, markets focused instead on what higher inflation means for interest rates.

Stronger inflation increases the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will maintain elevated rates—or potentially raise them further. That creates a challenge for silver because, unlike bonds, savings accounts and many other investments, it generates no income.

When interest rates rise, investors often move toward assets that offer yield, reducing the appeal of non-income-producing metals.

Despite the sharp decline, silver remains significantly higher than it was a year ago.

In June 2025, silver traded near $36 per ounce. Even after the recent collapse, prices around $64 still represent a gain of approximately 76% over the past twelve months.

The current selloff therefore represents a retreat from extraordinary highs rather than a return to historical norms.

The rally that preceded the collapse was remarkable.

Silver surged to approximately $121.67 per ounce on January 29, 2026, more than tripling from levels seen during 2025. The following day, the metal suffered its largest one-day decline on record, dropping as much as 35% intraday.

That selloff, combined with simultaneous weakness in gold, erased trillions of dollars in value across precious-metals markets and marked the beginning of a prolonged correction.

Analysts had warned for months that prices had become detached from fundamentals.

Colin Steel of HSBC described silver as fundamentally overvalued despite maintaining a positive long-term outlook. Suki Cooper, head of commodities research at Standard Chartered, similarly warned that silver had entered heavily overbought territory.

Other analysts argued that speculative trading had become the dominant force in the market, pushing prices beyond levels justified by actual industrial or investment demand.

Silver’s volatility stems from its unusual dual role.

It functions both as a precious metal and as an industrial commodity.

Silver is widely used in:

Solar panels
Electronics
Semiconductors
Medical devices
Electrical systems
Advanced manufacturing technologies

Because of that dual identity, silver prices are influenced by both investor sentiment and industrial demand.

Recently, industrial demand growth has shown signs of slowing. Solar manufacturers, one of the largest consumers of silver, continue developing technologies that reduce the amount of silver required per panel, limiting future demand growth.

For investors, the decline serves as another reminder that silver can be considerably more volatile than gold.

Many investors own silver through ETFs such as SLV or through physical coins and bars purchased as inflation hedges. Those who entered near January’s highs are facing substantial losses, while longer-term holders remain well ahead despite the correction.

The impact extends beyond financial markets.

Lower silver prices can eventually reduce costs for solar developers, electronics manufacturers and medical-device producers. At the same time, falling prices can pressure the profitability of silver miners and companies tied closely to precious-metals production.

Gold also moved lower Wednesday, trading near $4,160 per ounce, down more than 2% on the day.

Not everyone has turned bearish.

Some investors view the correction as a buying opportunity, citing long-term supply constraints and expectations for growing industrial demand over the coming decade. Supporters of that view argue that global silver supplies remain tight and that emerging technologies could drive future consumption.

For now, however, markets are focused on inflation, interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty.

The next major event for traders arrives on June 17, when new Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh is scheduled to hold his first post-meeting press conference. Investors will be looking for clues about how aggressively the central bank intends to respond to rising inflation.

If policymakers signal a more cautious approach, pressure on precious metals could ease.

Until then, rising oil prices, elevated inflation and expectations for higher interest rates continue to create a difficult environment for silver—even after one of the largest corrections in its history.

JBizNews Desk — Markets