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Informist, Friday, May 15, 2026

 

--COMEX July silver futures contract down 7.4% at $78.97 per ounce 

-- MCX July silver futures contract down 5.4% at INR 275,274 per kg 

 

MUMBAI – Futures contracts of silver on the Multi Commodity Exchange slipped on Friday, tracking a sharp fall in futures on the COMEX. Prices of the precious metal fell as the dollar strengthened against a basket of other currencies. Prices were also weighed down as prices of crude oil remained elevated, fanning fears of a further rise in inflation and dimming hopes of further rate cuts by central banks. 

 

The dollar index hit a near three-week high on Friday following the release of robust data on US retail sales, which grew 0.5% month-over-month in April. At 1221 IST, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.3% at 99.14. A strong dollar makes commodities priced in the currency such as silver less appealing for those holding other currencies, denting demand. 

 

With no major progress in peace talks between the US and Iran, energy flow through the Strait of Hormuz remains limited, sending oil prices across the globe higher. On Friday, US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the Strait of Hormuz during talks in Beijing, with the White House saying Xi agreed that the strategic waterway "must remain open to support the free flow of energy" as tensions over the Iran war continue to roil global markets, Al Jazeera reported. Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi urged BRICS nations at a meeting in New Delhi to condemn the US-Israel war on Iran as a violation of international law, insisting that Tehran would "never bow to any pressure," the report said.

 

Traffic remains largely suspended in the crucial Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil normally transits, Dow Jones reported. The average number of oil and gas tankers passing through the waterway in May so far is 2.6 a day, compared with 3.0 in April and the February average of nearly 50, the report said. This has kept prices of crude oil above the $100 per barrel mark on both the NYMEX and Intercontinental Exchange.

 

US Federal Reserve Bank of ‌New York President John Williams said on Thursday he does not see a need right now for the central bank to weigh any change in interest rate policy amid the uncertainty created by the West Asia war, Reuters reported. Typically, higher interest rates dim the appeal of the non-interest-bearing precious metals.

 

Though prices of gold have not fallen as steeply as those of silver, contracts of the yellow metal are down for the same reasons. "Gold is getting hit from all sides - rising oil has brought inflation back to the forefront, pushing yields higher and the dollar stronger, leaving the yellow metal as the unfortunate victim of the market's renewed rate-cut scepticism," Reuters reported, quoting Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.

 

At 1221 IST, the most active July silver contract on the MCX was down 5.4% at INR 275,100 per kilogram. The same-month contract on the COMEX was down 7.6% at $78.81 per ounce.  End

 

US$1 = INR 95.92

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Reported by Shreya Shetty

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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