Silver Drops 3% as Strong US Jobs Data Boosts Rate Hike Bets
2026-09-04 13:02
By
Joana Ferreira
1 min. read
Silver fell 3% to below $65 an ounce on Friday as the dollar strengthened after stronger-than-expected US employment data reinforced expectations for tighter monetary policy.
US nonfarm payrolls increased by 162,000 in August, following an upwardly revised gain of 23,000 in July and comfortably surpassing market expectations for a 56,000 increase.
The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.1%, while annual wage growth eased to 3.1%, although the slowdown was less pronounced than anticipated.
The resilient labor-market data strengthened the case for tighter monetary policy, with money markets now pricing in a near 60% probability of a Federal Reserve rate hike in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
The stronger dollar and rising rate expectations weighed on silver, which is particularly sensitive to changes in interest-rate and currency dynamics.