Silver leads the weekly fall among precious metals

Silver ended the trading week under pressure, closing at $53.90 an ounce on Friday, 23 October 2026, according to GoldPrice.com data for that date. That was a fall of 1.27 percent on the day and 5.40 percent over the week. The metal has now fallen 25.13 percent so far in 2026, a much steeper year-to-date decline than gold, and it sits within a 52-week range of $46.44 to $118.45.

The weakness was broad across the precious metals complex. Gold closed at $3,995.81 an ounce on 23 October, down 0.71 percent on the day and 4.07 percent on the week. Platinum fell 1.02 percent on the day to $1,550.50, down 5.77 percent on the week, while palladium dropped 0.98 percent to $1,042.10, down 6.25 percent on the week. The gold-to-silver ratio closed at 74.1, meaning one ounce of gold bought 74.1 ounces of silver.

What is behind the sell-off

Analyst commentary reported during the week pointed to a stronger US dollar, higher bond yields and concern that central banks may keep interest rates higher for longer if energy-driven inflation persists. Precious metals pay no interest, so they can look less attractive when yields rise and cash returns improve. Reports also noted that silver fell sharply on 22 October, dropping more than 5 percent in one session, before easing again into the Friday close.

In sterling terms, a separate UK bullion price page updated on 25 October 2026 at 05:22 showed silver at £40.26 per troy ounce, with gold at £2,987.59, platinum at £1,153.61 and palladium at £779.00. Sterling figures move with both the dollar metal price and the pound-dollar rate, so UK buyers can see a different change from dollar-based headlines. This article is market news, not investment advice.