By: Islam Tawfik

Retail traders on Capital.com pushed silver sentiment into extreme buy territory at the start of the week, before a wave of profit-taking emerged following the metal’s climb to fresh record highs.

Silver’s long bias reached as high as 81% before dropping back to 74%, with appetite to buy on any dips even if small heightened in the current environment. Intense retail participation combined with the supply constraint narrative have been a combination that has helped the precious metal’s price climb 30% since the start of this year outperforming against gold, it too enjoying a record high today and where 69% of our traders holding buy positions anticipating further price gains.

Monte Safieddine, Head of Research, MENA at Capital.com, said:

“The market remains a headline-driven environment meaning at times it'll feel less about fundamentals and more about momentum, which when combined with how far and how fast silver has risen makes this a volatile overview, a narrative where big price movement in either direction can't be ruled out.”

Beyond commodities, Capital.com data shows retail traders increasing exposure to equity indices following recent pullbacks as fresh shorts close out. Long bias in major US indices climbed notably, with the S&P 500 showing traders in extreme long territory at 78% holding buy positions (up from 71%) and the Nasdaq 100 reaching 75% not far off it. In Europe, sentiment flipped back to a majority long in the DAX (61%), while traders modestly trimmed long exposure in the FTSE (59%) and ASX (84%) following recent gains in both.

In FX markets, sentiment shifts point to selective risk-taking rather than broad US dollar conviction. Retail traders increased long exposure in EUR/USD (62%) and AUD/USD (61%), while positioning reversed sharply in GBP/JPY, moving from majority short to 60% long. USD/JPY positioning is now close to neutral ahead of the formal announcement regarding snap elections in Japan.