Silver Price Analysis: XAG/USD struggles to keep $26.00 amid sluggish markets

Silver picks up bids near $26.23, up 0.22% intraday, while extending its recovery moves from the intraday low of $25.97 during early Thursday. Even so, challenges to risks and the US dollar moves seem to guard the precious metal’s short-term upside.

Among the key challenges, the recently renewed fears of reflation, backed by UK budget, comments from the ECB and the US covid relief stimulus progress in the Senate, seem to exert the most pressure on the white metal. Also testing the commodity buyers could be the greenback strength that currently helps the US dollar index (DXY) to pierce the 91.00 threshold, up 0.08% on a day.

Meanwhile, chatters surrounding the rumored plot to attack Capitol Hill and China-linked hackers’ cyberattack on Microsoft’s email servers also weigh on the risks.

Against this backdrop, US 10-year Treasury yields rose 1.1 basis points to 1.48% whereas the S&P 500 Futures drop 0.25% by the press time.

It should be noted that the mood also gets soured amid fears of the Brazilian variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) as recent studies show that it negatively affects natural immunity.

Looking forward, the risk catalysts can keep offering intermediate moves ahead of Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at 17:05 GMT. Global markets will look for relfation concerns of the Fed boss in the statements, which if materialized could exert additional downside pressure on the precious metals and Antipodeans.

Technical analysis

A daily closing below 50-day SMA, at $26.52 now, for the first time in 11 weeks favors silver sellers to eye the late January lows surrounding $24.70.