Silver miners fall in premarket trading as the metal drops 2%

Silver and gold fell in early premarket trading on Tuesday as investors awaited delayed economic data, with little geopolitical news during the holiday-shortened week.

Spot silver was last seen down 2% to trade at around $74.85 per ounce, while silver futures fell 4% to trade at $74.7 dollars per ounce.

Hecla Mining, which owns one of the biggest silver mines in the world, Green Creek Mine in Alaska, was down 3% before the market opened. Meanwhile, Endeavour Silver shed 3.5%, First Majestic Silver was down nearly 4%, Coeur Mining lost nearly 3.4%, Teck Resources and Silvercorp Metals were roughly 3% lower, and Wheaton Precious Metals was down over 2%.

Despite geopolitical tensions resurfacing in the Middle East, Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note published Tuesday that silver was “trading $7 below its real adjusted price in 1790,” after prices fell in the morning.

Meanwhile, spot gold was down over 1% to $4,931 per ounce, and gold futures lost nearly 2% to trade at $4,952 per ounce.

Silver ETFs, including ProShares Ultra Silver was down 7% in premarket, while iShares Silver Trust and ABRDN physical silver fell just over 3%, according to FactSet data.

Gold and silver prices tumbled in late January as investors reacted to news that President Donald Trump had nominated Kevin Warsh to lead the Federal Reserve, leading to a stronger U.S. dollar. Silver futures plunged 30% at the time, marking their worst day since March 1980.

However, the sell-off in precious metals was short-lived, with gold and silver rebounding in early February.

Elsewhere, Australian global mining company BHP sealed a silver deal with Wheaton Precious Metals. The mining giant said the long-term silver streaming agreement would see BHP receive an upfront payment of $4.3 billion in exchange for delivering silver produced at its Antemina mine.