E-Paper
Up, up, then down: Why are gold, silver prices seeing such fluctuation? Explained
The safe haven assets' prices crashed on Friday, with gold dropping to around USD 5068 (AUD 7,282), and silver to to USD 98.50.
Gold and silver prices witnessed a surge at the beginning of 2026, with the former's prices peaking above USD 5,500 (AUD 7,900) per ounce for the first time on Thursday this week. In India, 24 karat gold reached record level of ₹1.8 lakh per 10 gram earlier this week before starting to drop.
Silver, which gained even faster than gold, went more than USD 120 (AUD 172) per ounce last week. This was among its strongest run in decades, The Conversation reported. Track gold, silver prices today here
However, the safe-haven assets' prices crashed on Friday, with gold dropping to around USD 5068 (AUD 7,282), and silver to to USD 98.50.
Also Read | Gold, silver prices drop sharply ahead of Budget speech, hit lower circuit
According to the All India Sarafa Association, silver saw a sharp drop of 18.85 per cent ( ₹72,500) to ₹3,12,000 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes), thus seeing a second day of heavy losses which wiped out much of this week's record gains.
Gold prices also slid ₹3,500, or 2.07 per cent to ₹1,65,500 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes).
Why are gold, silver prices seeing sharp volatility?
Investors currently seek for safe-haven assets – something they can buy to protect their savings from financial risks – amid rising geopolitical tensions, shifting signals about where interest rates are headed, and trade war threats, The Conversation reported.
The metals' crash on Friday came after financial markets reacted to United States President Donald Trump nominating Kevin Warsh as chair of the US Federal Reserve. The US Fed plays a central role in global financial stability.
In the case of gold, central banks around the world are buying the metal at a rapid place, seeing it as a stable place to park value amid uncertainty. Apart from banks, retail investors are also looking at gold and silver as a hedge, and are engaging in momentum play, trying to buy in to keep up with others, according to the Conversation UK report.
Silver surged more than 60 per cent in just the past month, outpacing even gold's impressive run of 30 per cent. The demand for silver, apart from it being a safe-haven asset, is driven by industrial uses, with the metal being critical for clean energy technologies, including solar panels, electric vehicles (EVs), and semiconductors.
