Silver and copper have displaced gold as the leading metal trading assets heading into 2026, with institutional and retail traders positioning for record-breaking rallies. Silver has nearly doubled in value this year, with most gains concentrated in the past two months due to a historic supply squeeze in the London benchmark market amid surging demand from India and silver-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs). While the London squeeze has eased recently as more metal flows into vaults, Chinese inventories remain at decade-low levels, sustaining supply constraints.

Marex Group Inc. analyst Ed Meir noted the silver rally’s heightened volatility: “If you look at the chart, there’s been a steeper parabolic move up than seen in previous rallies. The buying is much more concentrated, and in a much shorter time frame.” Silver has outperformed gold since the latter hit a record on October 20—gold has traded sideways, while silver rose over 11% to a new all-time high and copper climbed nearly 9%.

Implied options volatility for the iShares Silver Trust, the largest silver ETF, reached its highest level since early 2021 (the meme-stock trader era) last week. Over $1 billion flowed into the ETF in the past week, exceeding inflows into the largest gold fund and bolstering spot prices. Global X ETFs senior analyst Trevor Yates highlighted Western investors’ under-allocation to precious metals: they have flocked to silver ETFs in recent months, with significant room for further inflows as allocations normalize.

Comex silver futures options have seen a buying spree, driven by demand for protection against price swings and further rallies. Retail traders are active: CME Group data shows five-day average volume for micro futures contracts is near mid-October levels. A notable example is the 5,...