Silver Surges to New All-Time High of $56 Per Ounce as Comex Outage Intensifies Market Volatility

• Silver surges to a new all-time high of $56, duplicating Gold’s recent historical rally.

• The rally followed 11hours of halted trading after the Comex suffered what CME Group described as a cooling system failure.

Silver Breaks Above Prior Records After Chaotic Trading Session

Silver soared to a new all-time high of 56.49 dollars on Friday in a dramatic session shaped by extreme volatility and an unexpected outage on the Comex futures market.

Source: Tradingview

Spot prices climbed more than 4% to reach $55.66 per ounce, surpassing the peak set during last month’s historic squeeze in London. Three-month futures similarly rallied by over 5% as traders rushed back into the market once activity resumed in the United States.

Comex Halt Deepens Liquidity Strain Across Global Metals Markets

The rally followed more than eleven hours of halted trading after the Comex suffered what CME Group described as a cooling system failure. The prolonged downtime disrupted pricing benchmarks across multiple commodity markets and left traders without the usual futures signals needed for accurate price discovery.

Analysts said spreads in the spot market widened sharply due to the sudden lack of dependable futures reference points. Market participants described the event as one of the most significant outages in recent years and noted that its effects rippled throughout global metals trading.

Market Reactions Highlight Fragile Conditions in the Silver Supply Chain

Traders and analysts observed that the outage occurred during an already fragile period for silver. Christopher Kramer of Neuberger Berman said the disruption affected primary industrial metals and commodity-linked futures globally.

Market analyst Fawad Razaqzada added that without active CME pricing, spot liquidity providers became less confident in quoting narrow spreads. The return of trading brought a rush of repositioning, further adding momentum to the already rising spot price.

Tight Supply Persists Despite London Inflows and Global Rebalancing

Silver’s breakout comes just weeks after a severe supply squeeze in London pushed prices far above levels seen in Shanghai and New York. Although an inflow of 54 million ounces into the United Kingdom helped ease some of the tightness, global inventories remain constrained.

Warehouses connected to the Shanghai Futures Exchange recently recorded their lowest stockpiles since 2015, while volumes on the Shanghai Gold Exchange have fallen to their weakest level in more than nine years. These conditions continue to limit liquidity and heighten volatility.

Trade Policy and Critical Mineral Concerns Add New Uncertainty

Growing attention around the United States’ trade policy has introduced another layer of uncertainty. Silver was recently added to the list of critical minerals by the US Geological Survey, prompting speculation about potential tariffs or export restrictions.

Bloomberg data showed that roughly 75 million ounces have been withdrawn from Comex vaults since early October. Yet, some traders are choosing not to ship metal abroad until there is clarity on whether U.S.-sourced silver could soon command a domestic premium.

Silver Outperforms Gold as Broader Market Dynamics Strengthen Its Rally

Supported by tightening supply, global policy uncertainty, and sudden disruptions like the Comex outage, silver has emerged as one of the top-performing major commodities this year.

The metal has appreciated more than 72% in 2025, outpacing even Gold’s substantial gains. Market observers say that with inventories still thinning and liquidity remaining delicate across key trading hubs, the forces driving silver’s surge to a record high appear far from resolved.