Silver's Record-Breaking Run: A Market Mystery Unveiled
In a thrilling turn of events, silver bullion prices soared to unprecedented heights, reaching a staggering $55 per ounce in London. This surge came as the world's premier derivatives exchange, the CME, reopened after a technical glitch. But here's where it gets intriguing: the silver frenzy wasn't isolated.
Amid the Comex outage, silver contracts in Shanghai soared to new Yuan peaks, rising 2.0% to ¥12,682 per kilo. This surge occurred simultaneously with the Yuan's 14-month high against the US Dollar and gold's modest rise in China. Silver's midday fix in London reflected this momentum, settling at $53.88 per Troy ounce, matching November's benchmark.
The reopening of Comex trading saw silver prices in London jump by a remarkable 2.6% in just 80 minutes, peaking at $55.30 per Troy ounce. In contrast, gold peaked at $4208 in London spot trade, 3.9% below its mid-October Dollar high. Mitsubishi's bullion division highlights the CME outage's impact on global markets, including precious metals.
And this is the part most people miss: the outage's timing couldn't have been worse, falling on the last day of the month with reduced liquidity due to the US Thanksgiving Holiday. Silver stockpiles in Shanghai expanded for a second day, growing 5.2% from Wednesday's decade low. New York's iShares Silver Trust, with 80.0% of its bullion backing in London, expanded by 324 tonnes this week, the heaviest inflow since July.
With London's professional vault network holding 26,254 tonnes of silver at the end of October, the SLV's London backing accounts for a significant 47.5% of the world's central bullion trading and storage hub. Platinum, silver's industrial counterpart, also soared to 5-week highs at $1660 per Troy ounce as CME's Nymex contracts resumed trading.
Mitsubishi's note emphasizes platinum's favorable price outlook despite easing fundamentals as the market moves towards balance in 2026. The low interest from investors and speculators leaves room for gains, and precautionary stockpiling in an uncertain world is likely to maintain tight conditions with firm lease rates.
The CME outage's volatility extended beyond precious metals, with most global stock markets rising and the MSCI World Index climbing for the 7th consecutive session, approaching October's all-time high. CME Group's shares also rose, reaching a 2-week high.
Friday's silver price records pushed the Gold/Silver Ratio below 76 for the first time in 18 months. Copper also set new all-time highs, responding to bullish headlines from the CESCO Shanghai Copper Week conference, according to StoneX analyst Natalie Scott-Gray. Nicholas Snowdon of Mercuria Energy Group warned at Asia Copper Week 2025 that the USA is likely to hold 90% of global copper inventories in 2026 due to fears of Trump's import tariffs.
This market movement raises intriguing questions: What does this volatility mean for investors? How will these trends shape the future of precious metals and global markets? We invite you to share your thoughts and insights in the comments below!
