Silver Plunges Below $80 as US Yields Surge Past 4.5%

Silver (XAG/USD) plunged below $80/oz on May 15 as US 10-year Treasury yields spiked above 4.5%, boosting the dollar and opportunity costs for non-yielding metals. The rally began May 11 with a 7% surge to $86.80 intraday on US-Iran tensions and strong NFP (+115K vs. 62K exp.), retreated 2% to $84.29 on May 12's hot CPI (+0.4% m/m), then advanced 2.4% to $88.65 on May 13 amid India's 15% import duty hike and Asian demand, testing $90 on May 14 despite HSBC's $75/oz 2026 forecast upgrade and OCBC/UBS pullback warnings. The six-day streak snapped with yield-driven selling targeting $75-78 support.