New York, February 10, 2026, 13:32 (EST) — Regular session
- Spot silver slipped in midday U.S. trading, pulling back after a strong rebound the previous session.
- Traders are watching rate expectations again, with U.S. jobs numbers and inflation figures due out later this week.
- The Silver Institute’s latest outlook points to another year of tight supply, despite a slowdown in industrial demand.
Spot silver (XAG/USD) slumped 3.23% to $80.6125 an ounce as of 1:32 p.m. EST Tuesday, dropping $2.6920 for the day and hovering close to the bottom of its $79.9990-$84.0360 range. 1
Silver’s been acting like a market stress meter—moving with every dollar twitch, rate speculation, and sudden lurch in risk appetite. But just one rough session? That can wipe out an entire week’s run-up.
Once more, traders are angling for an edge off the U.S. data calendar. Bullion tends to catch a bid when rate-cut bets pick up—no yield means nothing to lose. But a quick move higher in yields, and silver drops out of favor fast.
Monday’s surge gave sellers an opportunity to lock in gains. “The big mover today is the U.S. dollar,” said Bart Melek, global head of commodity strategy at TD Securities. Spot silver jumped 6.3% to $82.86 after nearly 10% in the previous session. Melek pointed out that a hefty supply deficit can intensify price swings when retail demand picks up. 2
iShares Silver Trust (SLV), the main U.S. silver ETF, slipped to $72.87, down from its previous $76.04 close. U.S. silver futures dropped roughly 2.45% to $80.22. The 10-year Treasury yield, meanwhile, slipped back to about 4.149%. 3
Right now, it’s the Fed narrative steering the market, all eyes on the steady stream of data. “We’re seeing a light pullback or consolidation ahead of a bevy of key economic data coming out later this week,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures. Economists are looking for 70,000 jobs in January’s nonfarm payrolls report, set for Wednesday, while Friday brings the consumer price index. Traders are still factoring in two 25-basis-point rate cuts—quarter-point moves apiece—after flat U.S. retail sales for December. 4
Gold ticked lower, and silver followed, with Tuesday’s action pointing to traders cutting positions after a choppy stretch. In this market, headlines and leverage sometimes drive prices just as much as the underlying fundamentals—at least for a while.
Despite January’s surge, core fundamentals still lean tight. The Silver Institute expects global silver demand to hold steady in 2026, with investors in the retail space likely to make up for softer industrial and jewellery demand. That would mark the sixth year running that demand outpaces supply, pegged right now at a 67-million-ounce deficit. For industrial fabrication, the group sees a 2% dip to 650 million ounces as solar makers cut back on silver per unit and switch to alternatives. Physical investment, on the other hand, is expected to jump 20% to 227 million ounces, while total supply inches up 1.5% to 1.05 billion ounces. 5
That’s what makes silver so volatile—industrial buyers may be swapping it out, yet investment flows have the muscle to swamp those effects, particularly with an existing deficit in the market. Timing is the tricky part, and Tuesday’s action was all about that.
The risk is clear-cut. Should payrolls or CPI come in hotter than expected, the dollar and yields could jump, setting off fresh selling in a metal already prone to sharp moves.
Coming up: Wednesday brings the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report (February 11), then Friday’s CPI lands (February 13). Investors are eyeing both to see if rate-cut bets hold or get tossed again. Further out, the Silver Institute’s mid-April deficit update sits on traders’ radar as a bigger-picture read on supply.
