NEW YORK, February 26, 2026, 13:12 (EST) — Regular session
- Silver slips further, retreating after popping back above $90 an ounce just a day earlier.
- Safe-haven demand remains volatile as geopolitics and evolving U.S. tariff plans unsettle the market.
- U.S. jobs figures are up next, with the March Federal Reserve meeting also on traders’ radar.
Spot silver dropped nearly 3% Thursday, with traders scaling down positions after the metal failed to hold above $90 an ounce. The price landed at $86.44, off 2.97%, having swung from $85.14 to $90.48 during the session, according to Kitco data. 1
Silver’s role is shifting: traders now see it as a high-velocity stand-in for both global risk and central bank policy—straddling its identity between industrial metal and safe haven, but with sharper swings than gold. Just a day after silver spiked to $90.75 an ounce during early U.S. trading, the pullback shows how rapidly sentiment can snap back. 2
Gold held its ground, inching up 0.1% to $5,168.80 an ounce. Traders have kept an eye on the metal, especially after last week’s volatile swings. 3
Traders eyed Geneva, where a third round of indirect U.S.-Iran negotiations was set for later Thursday, hoping for signs of a potential framework to ease headline risk. “Gold and silver are attempting to break above resistance levels at $5,200 and $90 but have failed to sustain gains,” wrote Razan Hilal, market analyst at FOREX.com, flagging “drawdown risks” if a near-term deal takes shape. 4
Trade policy remains a flashpoint. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters that certain countries face a tariff increase—some will see rates jump to 15% or higher, up from the newly set 10% duty. He stopped short of specifying which nations are affected. “It’ll go up to 15(%) for some,” Greer said in the interview. 5
There wasn’t much to cheer for metals traders in the latest U.S. numbers. Jobless claims ticked up by 4,000—hitting a seasonally adjusted 212,000 for the week ended Feb. 21—which suggests the labor market is still hanging steady. “The data show no sign of the layoffs we would expect in a weakening labor market,” said Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics. 6
Silver is sensitive here—rising rates tend to dull appetite for assets without a yield. Traders are still puzzling over whether the Fed will opt for a cut, hold steady, or keep the suspense going at its March 17–18 meeting. 7
Expectations for rates are still shifting. Early Thursday, CME’s FedWatch tool — pulling probabilities from fed funds futures — posted new numbers. 8
Silver’s fortunes are tied to industry, with its demand rooted in manufacturing, electronics, and the solar sector. This dual role means macro headlines can tug the market both ways.
The near-term outlook remains tangled. Any major progress in the Geneva talks might sap some of the safe-haven buying, but a sudden shift in tariff policy—or unexpectedly robust U.S. data stretching out those rate-cut wagers—would likely keep the pressure on.
The focus now shifts to the February U.S. jobs data—set for release March 6 at 8:30 a.m. ET—before the Fed’s March policy meeting comes back into play. 9
