Silver Lingering at $17.00

Silver has recorded losses on Monday. In the European session, the metal is trading at $16.79 down $0.20 or 1.18% on the day. There are no U.S. events on the day.

Retail Sales up, but Silver Yawns

The week wrapped up with U.S. retail sales reports for October, and the news was mixed. Retail sales improved to 0.3%, up from -0.3% a month earlier. This beat the estimate of 0.1%. It was a similar result for core retail sales, which improved from -0.1% to +0.2%. However, analysts had expected a gain of 0.3%. Silver prices drifted last week, and the retail sales releases did not trigger stronger movement from the metal.

Investors Eye Trade War Headlines

The trade war between the U.S. and China has taken a toll on both economies, which has dampened global economic conditions. There have been recent reports that the sides are close to an interim agreement, but one key stumbling block is China’s insistence that the U.S. must first remove all trade tariffs. Still, there is optimism in the markets that the trade talks are moving in the right direction, and this positive sentiment sent silver prices reeling earlier in the month, as the metal fell over 7% in just one week. New developments in the trade talks could continue to cause volatility for safe-haven assets like silver.

Silver Technical Analysis

Silver has been range-bound for the past week, as the metal continues to stay close to the 17.00 level. There is immediate resistance at 17.25. This is followed by resistance at 17.75. On the downside, the 200-EMA is just below silver, at 16.67. This line has held in support since November 8. Close by, there is support at 16.50. This is followed by support at the round number of 16.00. I don’t expect much change in the silver prices forecast, as the metal isn’t showing any signs of a breakout.