Silver prices to ‘languish between $50 and $100 for years’ - Bloomberg’s McGlone
Although the silver market is expected to see its sixth consecutive annual supply deficit, that might not be enough to drive prices back to their January highs, according to one market strategist.
In his latest note on silver, Mike McGlone, Senior Market Strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence, reiterated his relatively muted outlook for the precious metal, saying that silver prices could “languish between $50 and $100 for years.”
McGlone’s comments come as silver prices remain unable to consistently hold gains above initial resistance at $80 an ounce. Spot prices last traded at $78.69 an ounce, down 0.22% on the day.
Although McGlone doesn’t rule out another run to the January highs above $120 an ounce, he pointed out that higher prices will cause a fundamental shift in supply/demand dynamics.
“A top takeaway is that what was a supply deficit will shift due to the parabolic price adjustment, which may transition to a low-price-cure phase,” he said.
McGlone noted that silver’s current price action is similar to other periods of parabolic moves. He explained that silver’s rally, which started in earnest in mid-2025, peaked with a 2.6x premium compared to its 10-year moving average, similar to its last parabolic move in 2011.
“We see parallels. At about $79 on April 15, silver appears stuck between $50 and $100 for an extended period, with normal reversion risks leaning toward its 10-year moving average near $33 instead of the potential to stay above $100,” he said.
At the same time, McGlone pointed out that its 180-day volatility is more than five times greater than that of the S&P 500, “the highest since 1980, when the metal peaked just below $50. That high was matched in 2011 and not exceeded until 2025.”
Looking ahead, McGlone said that a reversion of the trend could push silver prices to $50 an ounce.
McGlone’s gloomy outlook comes as markets continue to digest the Silver Institute’s annual Silver Survey, which calls for an annual deficit of 46.3 million ounces.
Industrial demand is expected to decline by 3% this year, led by a forecast 19% drop in silver consumption in photovoltaic solar panels.
Metals Focus, the research firm behind the survey, expects investment demand to be the biggest driving factor in the silver market this year. The survey expects investment demand to rise 18% this year, led by 30 tonnes of physical inflows into silver-backed exchange-traded products.
