A 1 kilogram gold bar and a 500 gram gold bar next to a 1 kilogram silver bar at The Vaults Group gold dealer in Barcelona, Spain, Monday, April 28, 2025.
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Gold and silver prices lost ground on Wednesday as investors booked profits following historic annual gains and exchange operator CME Group raised margins on precious metals futures for the second time in a week.
Spot gold prices fell 0.1% to $4,339.89 an ounce as of 8:50 a.m. ET, extending losses into the new year. The yellow metal hit a one-week low in the previous session.
Meanwhile, spot silver prices fell 5.6% to $72.15 an ounce, slowing gains after topping $80 for the first time earlier in the week.
The move comes at the end of a highly successful year for the precious metal.
Gold is up more than 64% year-to-date, marking its best annual performance since 1979 and its third consecutive year of positive gains. The rally has been supported by a number of factors, including the impact of U.S. interest rate cuts, tariff tensions, and strong demand from exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and central banks.
Silver will far outperform gold in 2025. The metal, which has endured wild price swings in recent days, is on track for an annual gain of nearly 150%. Similar to gold, this is silver’s best annual performance since 1979. The high price of silver was driven by a combination of low supply and high demand from India, as well as industrial demand and tariffs.
CME Group, one of the world’s largest commodity exchanges, announced on Tuesday that margins on gold, silver, platinum and palladium will increase again after the close of trading on Wednesday.
The company said in a statement that the decision was made “following a normal review of market volatility to ensure adequate collateral.”
This notification means that traders will need to put more cash into their bets against the possibility of default upon delivery of the contract.
Gold and silver futures fell sharply on Monday after CME Group raised margin requirements for precious metals earlier in the week.
—CNBC’s Gaelle Legrand contributed to this report.
