Silver has been on a rollercoaster ride in 2026 so far, surging to new all-time highs at $121 on January 29 before cratering all the way down to a local bottom of $65 earlier today. Since then, the precious metal has displayed a bounce to $76, creating some solid distance from the local bottom. Still, given silver’s extreme volatility as of late, no silver price level feels particularly cheap or expensive at the moment.
Analysts are lifting their long-term silver price forecasts while warning investors to brace for heightened volatility. A Reuters poll published Wednesday raised the average silver price estimate for 2026 to $79.50 per ounce, up from $50 in October.
Let’s take a look at the most recent news related to silver as well as expert price targets to get a better grip of what to expect next in the volatile silver market.
Billionaire Chinese trader places huge bet against silver
A reclusive Chinese billionaire trader known for cashing in on gold’s rally has taken a major bearish stance on silver, with his short position now valued at nearly $300 million after the metal’s recent slide.
Bian Ximing, who primarily lives in Gibraltar, has reportedly earned close to $3 billion from long gold positions on the Shanghai Futures Exchange since early 2022, according to Bloomberg. He has since built the exchange’s largest net short position in silver, totaling around 450 tons, or roughly 30,000 contracts.
Silver’s sharp decline over the past week has resulted in a paper profit of about 2 billion yuan ($288 million). While market volatility has forced Bian to unwind some positions at a loss, his overall trade is still on track to deliver a net gain of roughly 1 billion yuan based on prices as of Tuesday’s close.
CME Group raises initial margin requirements for silver futures
CME Group has raised margin requirements for its silver futures contracts as it moves to curb risk amid elevated volatility in precious metals markets. The exchange increased both initial and maintenance margins for COMEX 5000 Silver Futures to 18%, up from 15%, with the change taking effect after market close on Friday, February 6.
margins serve as deposits to protect against default risk, and CME has recently shifted to setting margin levels as a percentage of contract value instead of fixed dollar amounts for gold, silver, platinum, and palladium.
UBS analysts say silver fundamentals remain robust, but volatility is a major issue
CNBC cites strategists at Swiss bank UBS saying that silver’s fundamentals remain strong, but its extreme volatility makes it difficult to recommend at the moment.
The bank noted that one-month silver volatility has risen above 100%, increasing the likelihood of sharp price swings, and warned that prices may struggle to hold above $85 an ounce without consistent investment inflows.
So far this year, silver has seen 11 price moves of at least 5% in either direction, according to LSEG data. Given these conditions, UBS said it does not view long-term exposure to silver at current levels as attractive.
Still, the bank emphasized that longer-term fundamentals remain supportive, pointing to lower interest rates, global debt concerns, U.S. dollar debasement risks, and an expected recovery in global growth in 2026.
Algorithmic silver forecast expects more pain
The silver price forecast from CoinCodex expects silver to move substantially lower in the mean term, as it forecasts the precious metal to reach a low of $45 in early March. This expected crash is forecasted to be followed by a strong rally that would bring the price all the way up to $92 in May.
Source:: Silver Price Forecast: Billionaire Trader Places Huge Short Bet, but Fundamentals Remain Solid