Silver Slumps as Payroll Print Falls Short, Yields Remain Elevated

Silver prices closed out the week at $60.71 an ounce on the COMEX, marking a 6.2% decline over seven days and dipping below its 50-day moving average of $65.51.

The metal's performance was unexpected given the soft payroll print, which showed only 29,000 jobs added outside agriculture in September, far short of the 90,000 economists had forecasted.

Despite a brief rally following the release, yields on US Treasuries remained elevated, keeping pressure on precious metals. The market is currently governed by the risk-free return offered by government paper, making it difficult for allocators to justify holding non-yielding assets like silver.

In related news, refineries are experiencing backlogs of three to four months, while exchange inventories remain plentiful, with 101.10 million ounces of immediately deliverable silver stored in COMEX warehouses as of October 1.