Silver Slides to Two-Month Low

Silver prices fell toward $59 an ounce on Thursday, reaching their lowest level since early August, as investors weighed the Federal Reserve’s September meeting minutes for clues on the path for interest rates. The dollar remained near an 18-month high, while US Treasury yields hovered close to their highest levels in more than two decades after the minutes showed that all 19 policymakers supported September’s rate increase, with most favoring another hike before year-end. Markets now see a nearly 17% chance of an October hike and more than an 85% probability of a December increase, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Meanwhile, geopolitical tensions offered some support to safe-haven demand, with the number of vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz falling to its lowest level in more than two months as fighting in the region intensified, according to shipping data.