Gold, Silver Prices Collapse: What’s Crushing Metals Investments in 2026?

A brutal metals selloff is accelerating, with silver crashing below $70 and gold posting its sixth loss in seven sessions. The plunge—triggering warnings of a deepening 10%+ correction across the sector—has wiped billions from portfolios as platinum, palladium, and industrial metals join the downdraft. Analysts point to surging real yields, a resilient dollar, and shifting safe-haven flows into digital assets as key pressures battering traditional precious metals.

Why are Gold and Silver Prices Down?

One big reason for both Gold and Silver prices falling has been the continued battle against inflation. Hopes of interest rate cuts, which helped spur metals higher late last year, are beginning to dwindle. Central banks in the U.S. and Europe this week signaled that rates might not fall as quickly as investors had expected. War in the Middle East and the resulting energy shock have clouded their outlooks for inflation and economic growth.

In addition, the precious metal ETF market has expectedly cooled after a string of months of being a hot commodity. After investing millions into gold exchange-traded funds over the past year, individual investors have begun to slow down the buying spree. Thursday marked the sixth straight day that they sold SPDR Gold Shares, the largest gold ETF, according to data from VandaTrack. Over that period, they have sold about $10.5 million of the ETF on a net basis, based on data through midday trading Thursday. That is a relatively small figure compared with buying last year, which reached as much as $36.8 million in one day.

Once inflation finally begins to subside and the ongoing war between the US, Israel, and Iran ends, perhaps the precious metals market could return to the highs it saw near the beginning of this year.