Impact of Treasury Yields and Federal Reserve Expectations
A key driver of silver’s late-week recovery was the decline in U.S. Treasury yields. This decline was triggered by rising investor confidence that the Federal Reserve might start cutting interest rates as early as September, following signals that inflation is cooling. Lower interest rates generally make non-yielding assets like silver more attractive, which led to increased buying interest. Additionally, positive U.S. jobless claims data, which showed fewer-than-expected filings, eased recession fears and provided a temporary boost to silver prices.
Despite this, the overall market sentiment remained cautious. Traders were particularly focused on the upcoming U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which could significantly influence the Federal Reserve’s policy decisions. A benign inflation reading might reinforce the case for rate cuts, potentially driving further demand for silver as a hedge against economic uncertainty.
Industrial Demand Concerns from the U.S. and China
While the potential for Federal Reserve rate cuts offered some bullish sentiment, silver’s industrial demand outlook remained a concern. Both the U.S. and China, two of the largest industrial consumers of silver, have shown signs of weakening demand. In the U.S., manufacturing activity has slowed, partly due to lingering recession fears, which has dampened the industrial demand for silver. Similarly, in China, the world’s largest silver consumer, economic data points to a cooling manufacturing sector, further limiting the metal’s upside potential.
The soft industrial demand from these two economic giants has acted as a significant cap on silver’s price gains. Even as the market speculated on potential monetary easing in the U.S., the lack of strong industrial demand created a ceiling that silver struggled to break through.