Silver Jumps To Near $23 As Israel-Palestine Conflicts Improve Bullion’s Appeal

(October 17,2023- Sagar Dua)

• Silver price climbs to $23.00 as deepening Middle East tensions improve the safe-haven appeal.
• The US Dollar and long-term bond yields have recovered strongly after upbeat US Retail Sales data. 
• Silver price jumps above the 50% Fibo retracement at $22.85.

Silver price (XAG/USD) prints a fresh two-week high at $23.00 as the appeal for bullion improves due to deepening Middle East tensions. Israel is ready for the ground invasion of the Gaza Strip from terror attacks from the Hamas military group.

The uncertainty over US President Joe Biden’s visit to Israel to support it in the war situation against Palestine and ensure the safety of civilians in Gaza has strengthened the demand for Gold and Silver.

Meanwhile, the US Dollar and long-term bond yields have recovered strongly after upbeat United States Retail Sales data.  The US Census Bureau reported that consumer spending momentum expanded at a higher pace of 0.7% in September against estimates of 0.3%. Robust retail sales were prompted by upbeat demand for automobiles and dining out.

For fresh guidance on interest rates, investors shift focus to the speech from Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell, which is scheduled for Thursday. It would be interesting to know whether Jerome Powell would join other teammates and support a steady interest rate policy due to rising Treasury yields or will consider some further policy-tightening appropriate.

Silver technical analysis

Silver price climbs above the 50% Fibonacci retracement (plotted from August 30 high at $25.00 to October low around $20.70) at $22.85. The white metal continues to find support from the 20-period Exponential Moving Average (EMA), which trades around $22.60.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) (14) climbs into the bullish range of 60.00-80.00, which indicates that the bullish impulse has been activated.