Updated: Thursday, December 18, 2025 — 1:57 PM GMT
Silver is pausing after one of its most dramatic runs in decades. Around 1:57 PM GMT (13:57), spot silver (XAG/USD) was trading in the mid-$65s to near $66 per ounce, consolidating below Wednesday’s record area near $66.9. Midday pricing snapshots highlighted the tug-of-war: FXEmpire cited $65.83 in early afternoon GMT trading, while Investing.com reported silver around $66.31 later in the European/US crossover—an illustration of how quickly quotes can shift across market feeds. [1]
Even with today’s churn, the bigger picture remains striking: silver is still up roughly ~129% year-to-date (depending on the data source), dramatically outperforming many major assets in 2025. [2]
Below is a roundup of today’s key silver news, forecasts, and analyst views dated December 18, 2025, plus the near-term catalysts traders are watching next.
Silver price today: where XAG/USD stands on Dec. 18, 2025
Silver’s surge has pushed it into rare territory. Today’s trading has largely been about digesting gains and managing positioning rather than a clean trend move—classic behavior after a record-setting rally.
Key reference points from Dec. 18 coverage include:
- Record high context: Reuters notes silver retreated from Wednesday’s record high of $66.88 and was $65.83 at 16:45 GMT (later in the session). [3]
- Intraday range: Investing.com’s XAG/USD overview showed a day’s range roughly $64.64–$66.63, underscoring how wide swings have become at these elevated levels. [4]
- FXStreet “price today” snapshot: FXStreet data put silver at $66.08, down about 0.57% versus the prior day, and up 128.71% since the start of the year; it also flagged the gold/silver ratio near 65.49. [5]
The takeaway: silver remains close enough to record highs to keep bulls interested, but extended enough to invite frequent pullbacks and profit-taking.
What moved silver on December 18: CPI surprise meets an already overbought market
1) U.S. inflation cooled more than expected — supportive for precious metals, but not a one-way trade
The main macro headline of the day was U.S. inflation. Reuters reported U.S. consumer prices rose 2.7% year-on-year in November, below the 3.1% forecast in a Reuters poll, nudging markets toward firmer rate-cut expectations. [6]
Investing.com added detail: core CPI (excluding food and energy) was 2.6% year-on-year, also below expectations, and it emphasized the unusual backdrop—October CPI wasn’t published after data collection issues during the government shutdown. [7]
Normally, a softer inflation print plus easing-rate expectations is a constructive mix for non-yielding metals. But silver’s price action shows that when a market is already stretched, “good news” can still trigger selling—especially if traders decide the headline is a reason to lock in gains.
2) Rate-cut expectations for 2026 stayed front and center
In today’s Reuters precious-metals coverage, traders were shown leaning into a more dovish path: LSEG data pointed to about 63 basis points of expected Fed cuts next year. [8]
Broader market coverage from Reuters also captured the political and leadership overlay: President Donald Trump said the next Fed chair would be someone who wants rates “lower… by a lot,” while the market weighs what that could mean for future policy independence and rate expectations. [9]
FXStreet echoed the theme, pointing to growing pricing for two Fed rate cuts in 2026 and highlighting Fed Governor Christopher Waller’s dovish lean. [10]
3) Profit-taking risk rose because silver is extended (and traders know it)
“Overbought” is one of the most repeated words in today’s silver commentary—and for a reason.
- In an early-session note timestamped 01:35 GMT, FXStreet said silver slipped below $66 in Asia and explicitly linked the pullback to an overbought RSI on the daily chart, while still describing the broader setup as bullish. [11]
- MarketWatch’s Dec. 18 piece (paywalled to full text in some regions) relayed a cautionary stance from analysts who argued silver may be overextended after a 100%+ year and that risk/reward could favor taking some profits. [12]
This combination—supportive macro plus overbought technicals—is exactly how you get a day where silver can be “fundamentally strong” yet still trade heavy.
The day’s narrative: silver held near records even as markets whipsawed
Silver’s story on Dec. 18 wasn’t just about U.S. inflation; it was also about a packed central-bank calendar and shifting FX/yield dynamics.
A Reuters report republished by The Business Times captured the pre-data tone: at 02:56 GMT, spot silver was $66.44, near record highs, while markets waited for inflation data and parsed Fed commentary. It also reported that some analysts see $70/oz as a possible test in 2026 if rate cuts continue to support precious metals. [13]
Later, Reuters’ global markets wrap described how the CPI surprise pushed Treasury yields lower (the U.S. 10-year yield around 4.12%) while the dollar index ultimately turned slightly higher as markets processed the data. [14]
That matters for silver because it sits at the intersection of:
- real yields (lower yields can help),
- the U.S. dollar (a firmer dollar can cap upside), and
- risk appetite (silver often trades as a higher-beta cousin of gold).
Silver fundamentals: why 2025 became a breakout year
A central reason silver has outrun gold in 2025 is that it’s not just a monetary metal. It’s also a critical industrial input—meaning it can benefit when both safe-haven demand and manufacturing/energy-transition demand run hot.
Reuters attributed silver’s outsized 2025 performance to investment demand and supply-deficit concerns. [15]
FXStreet’s Dec. 18 analysis expanded on the demand side, pointing to strong industrial pull from solar, electric vehicles, and data centers, and it referenced expectations that the market’s structural deficit could persist into 2026. [16]
The Economic Times went further in its Dec. 18 explainer, emphasizing the same big forces—rate-cut expectations, cooling labor signals, tight inventories, and industrial demand—while also highlighting how the “silver story” is increasingly tied to electrification and AI-era infrastructure. [17]
Silver technical analysis today: the levels traders are watching
While long-term narratives explain why silver is up triple digits this year, day-to-day trading is being driven by levels—especially after price discovery at new highs.
Here’s how today’s widely cited technical frameworks line up:
FXStreet (early Asia): support near the breakout zone
FXStreet’s 01:35 GMT technical view said the break above the $64.00 area was a key trigger and that this region (near a short-term moving average) is now a pivotal support if dip buyers step back in. [18]
FXEmpire: CPI-driven breakout vs. correction scenario
FXEmpire’s Dec. 18 forecast framed silver as “holding just under” the record area and outlined a clean catalyst-driven map:
- A bullish outcome could clear the $66.90 region.
- A bearish reaction could fuel profit-taking toward roughly $63.85. [19]
FX Leaders: resistance near $66.95, support near $65.10 (short-term bias)
FX Leaders’ Dec. 18 note also leaned constructive, identifying:
- Resistance: around $66.95, then higher targets (it references $68.17 and $68.50 as follow-through zones)
- Support: around $65.10, then roughly $63.82 [20]
Put simply: bulls want silver to stay above the mid-$60s support band, while bears want a deeper reset toward the low-$60s pivots.
Silver forecast and outlook: what analysts are saying for 2026
With silver flirting with $67, forecasts naturally cluster around one psychological number: $70.
- The Business Times (via Reuters) reported that some analysts expect silver to test $70/oz next year, particularly if U.S. rate cuts continue to underpin precious metals. [21]
- Reuters’ Dec. 18 report also highlighted how silver’s 2025 surge has been driven by investment interest and tightening supply, setting the stage for continued bullish discussion into 2026. [22]
- The Economic Times described a wider bullish forecast band—$70–$75 by late 2026 in some scenarios—while stressing that silver’s smaller market size makes it prone to sharp swings. [23]
At the same time, the caution flags are obvious:
- If U.S. growth re-accelerates, or the dollar strengthens materially, silver can correct fast.
- If rate-cut expectations get repriced lower (fewer cuts, later cuts), the “easy macro tailwind” weakens.
- And after a 100%+ year, mean reversion and de-risking can happen even in a bull market. [24]
What to watch next: the near-term catalysts after today’s CPI
Even after CPI, the calendar stays busy—and silver tends to react strongly when rates, FX, and growth expectations are in motion.
Key items highlighted in today’s reporting include:
- Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation (flagged as the next major U.S. inflation checkpoint in the Reuters-republished Business Times report). [25]
- Central bank divergence: Reuters’ global markets wrap noted the Bank of England cut rates, the ECB held, and the Bank of Japan was expected to hike—a mix that can reshape currency moves and ripple into dollar-priced metals. [26]
- Fed leadership and forward guidance: Trump’s comments about the next Fed chair and the market’s focus on how many cuts land in 2026 remain part of the macro “noise” that can still move silver day-to-day. [27]
Bottom line for silver today
As of 1:57 PM GMT on Dec. 18, 2025, silver is doing what overheated markets often do after making history: it’s consolidating, with price action pulled between:
- a macro tailwind (cooler inflation + rate-cut expectations), and
- a positioning headwind (profit-taking + overbought technicals). [28]
References
1. www.fxempire.com, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.reuters.com, 4. www.investing.com, 5. www.fxstreet.com, 6. www.reuters.com, 7. www.investing.com, 8. www.reuters.com, 9. www.reuters.com, 10. www.fxstreet.com, 11. www.fxstreet.com, 12. www.marketwatch.com, 13. www.businesstimes.com.sg, 14. www.reuters.com, 15. www.reuters.com, 16. www.fxstreet.com, 17. m.economictimes.com, 18. www.fxstreet.com, 19. www.fxempire.com, 20. www.fxleaders.com, 21. www.businesstimes.com.sg, 22. www.reuters.com, 23. m.economictimes.com, 24. www.fxstreet.com, 25. www.businesstimes.com.sg, 26. www.reuters.com, 27. www.reuters.com, 28. www.investing.com
