Silver Trading Sideways at Sticky $18.00 line

Silver is trading quietly on Tuesday. In the European session, the metal is trading at $18.00, down $0.02 or 0.12% on the day.

Silver Unable to Break Away from 18.00

There is no doubt that silver will break out, but traders will need to show patience. Silver prices remain close to the $18.00 level, a trend which has continued since October 25. The metal yawned after mixed U.S. jobs numbers on Friday. U.S. employment numbers for October ended the week on a mixed note. Wage growth improved to 0.2%, up from 0.0%. However, this fell short of the forecast of 0.3%. Nonfarm payrolls slipped to 128 thousand, but this beat the forecast of 90 thousand. The exceptionally low forecast was due to a strike by GM workers, which ended last week. Investors are keeping an eye on U.S. Services PMI, which will be released later on Tuesday.

Silver continues to show limited movement around the 18.00 level. This trend is similar to what we saw throughout October, when the metal hovered close to the 17.50 line. The U.S. economy is still humming along with a growth rate of close to 2.0%, but the trade dispute with China continues to cast a dark shadow. Silver appears comfortable around the 18.00 level and could continue to see choppiness this week.

Silver Technical Analysis

Silver continues to flirt with the round number of 18.00, which has psychological significance. The 50-EMA line, which is at 17.56, continues to support silver prices and this is indicative of an uptrend. If silver can stay above the 18.00 line, it can set its sights on the next resistance line, which is at 18.70. This line is protecting the round number of 19.00 and has held intact since the first week of September.