Silver prices strengthened slightly on Friday to close out a week of consolidation for the white metal, after reaching multi-year highs of over $29.60 an ounce on April 12.
Prices rose as high as $28.97 an ounce on Friday before easing back to around $28.65 an ounce later in the day. That compares with around $28.25 an ounce in late deals on Thursday.
The trading action showed that silver prices held within the price range established on Monday and Tuesday, with prices moving around 50 cents either side of $28.50 through the week.
Silver took a lead from gold prices, which were similarly flat-to-slightly-bullish through the week, following all-time highs seen on April 12.
Ongoing tensions in the Middle-East continued to support safe-haven flows through the week, although a modicum of respite came on Friday as it appeared that Iran and Israel were not immediately locked into a round of escalating retaliatory strikes, as some had feared.
The continuing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine have overshadowed the more bearish impact of a recent lowering of expectations of interest rate cuts in the coming months. Data from interest rate traders now points to the first rate cut by the US Fed taking place in July or September, rather than June.
Looking ahead, the markets will be watching out for Monday’s Euro Area consumer confidence figures, for the latest take on the European economy, followed by a speech by ECB President Christine Lagarde.
Then on Tuesday, the markets will get an update on the US economy with the monthly manufacturing and services PMI data.
Frank’s experience covering the commodities markets spans 22 years, with a particular specialism in metals, carbon and energy markets. He has worked as a senior editor for S&P Global Commodity Insights (formerly Platts) and before this, at ICIS-LOR, a part of Reed Business Information (Reed Elsevier), where he covered the petrochemicals markets from 2003 to 2005.
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