Gold falls to $5,000, silver tumbles 14% as precious metals rally come to a halt
Gold (GC=F) fell 6% on Friday to around $5,000 an ounce, while silver (SI=F) fell 14%, a sharp reversal of this year’s massive rally in precious metals.
Volatility came with a broader sell-off in the stock market, with major averages lower.
“As metals move higher, persistent price peaks are more likely to occur in 2026, especially for silver,” Bloomberg senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone wrote on Friday.
“There are always solid fundamental reasons for rallies, but when prices rise as quickly as they do in metals, deficits can slide quickly,” he added.
“I think the ongoing rally in metals, especially gold and silver, is entering a dangerous phase,” Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said on Thursday.
“The problem is that volatility feeds on itself. As price fluctuations intensify, liquidity weakens,” he added.
Gold prices are up about 15% so far as the dollar loses value against other currencies.
Read more: How to invest in gold in 4 steps?
Just last week, Goldman Sachs analysts set their year-end price target for gold at $5,400, with potential upside risk due to increased participation from private sector investors.
The precious metal rose above $5,500 on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady, and a statement from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell did little to stem the dollar’s slide.
“I see this as a sign that belief levels are high in the Dollar down trade,” Brookings Institution senior fellow Robin Brooks wrote in a note on Thursday before gold’s slide. He noted that “the weaker Dollar is exaggerating the depreciation trade.”
Silver, which rose above $120 per ounce before losing gains, was trading at $99 per ounce on Friday.
The precious metal is up nearly 28% so far following a dizzying rise in 2025.
“Silver prices have already significantly exceeded our forecast averages, but reaching a top is nearly impossible in markets exhibiting near-parabolic price momentum,” JPMorgan analysts wrote earlier this month. he said.
Ines Ferre is Yahoo Finance’s senior business reporter. Follow him on X @ines_ferre.
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