Gold and silver prices make a major rebound! Exchanges take action again to adjust the price limits and margin requirements for silver, crude oil, and other commodities

After a historic plunge, gold and silver prices rebounded strongly on Tuesday. Amid market turbulence, exchanges took further action.

On February 3, the Shanghai Futures Exchange (hereinafter referred to as “SHFE”) issued multiple notices adjusting the daily price limit and margin requirements for related futures contracts.

Specifically, regarding silver futures, starting from the close settlement on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, SHFE will adjust the price limit for listed silver futures contracts to 19%, with a margin requirement of 20% for position trading and 21% for general trading.

At the same time, starting from the close settlement on Thursday, February 5, 2026, SHFE will adjust the price limits for fuel oil, petroleum asphalt, butadiene rubber, and natural rubber futures contracts to 9%, with margin requirements of 10% for position trading and 11% for general trading; pulp and coated paperboard futures contracts will have their price limits adjusted to 7%, with margin requirements of 8% for position trading and 9% for general trading.

SHFE’s subsidiary, Shanghai International Energy Exchange, also announced that from the close settlement on Thursday, February 5, 2026, the price limits for crude oil, low-sulfur fuel oil, and 20# rubber futures contracts will be adjusted to 9%, with margin requirements of 10% for position trading and 11% for general trading.

Furthermore, on February 3, the Shanghai Gold Exchange also issued a notice adjusting margin levels and price limits for gold and silver futures.

For gold, starting from the close settlement on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, margin requirements for contracts such as Au (T+D), mAu (T+D), Au (T+N1), Au (T+N2), NYAuTN06, and NYAuTN12 will be increased from 16% to 17%, and the daily price limit will be raised from 15% to 16% from the next trading day; the margin requirement for the CAu99.99 contract will be increased from 120,000 yuan per lot to 150,000 yuan per lot.

For silver, starting from the close settlement on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, the margin requirement for the Ag (T+D) contract will be adjusted from 26% to 23%, and the daily price limit will be reduced from 25% to 22% from the next trading day.

The sharp decline in gold and silver prices this Monday triggered a limit-down in 13 domestic futures contracts. After “Black Monday,” the main domestic futures contracts saw some recovery on Tuesday. As of the midday close on February 3, Shanghai Silver fell over 16%, Shanghai Tin dropped more than 6%, crude oil declined over 4%, caustic soda and LU fuel oil fell more than 2%, Shanghai Nickel and iron ore declined over 1%, while coke and eggs saw slight decreases; palladium rose over 8%, polysilicon increased over 6%, European shipping lines gained more than 5%, lithium carbonate rose over 4%, platinum increased over 3%, Shanghai Copper and international copper rose over 2%, and Apple and Shanghai Gold saw slight gains.

In the night session on February 3, many major domestic futures contracts entered an upward trend. As of the time of writing, Shanghai Gold rose over 4%, Shanghai Silver over 7%, and Shanghai Copper over 3%.

International markets performed even more aggressively, with spot gold (London Gold) rebounding over 6% at its peak. As of the report, it increased by 5.67%, trading at $4,923.39 per ounce, with the year-to-date gain returning to over 14%. International spot silver (London Silver) experienced even greater volatility, with a peak rebound of over 12% today, reaching above $89 per ounce at one point. After this significant rebound, silver’s year-to-date increase has recovered to over 22%.

However, the volatility in gold and silver prices has directly affected market sentiment, causing a split among participants. Industry insiders note that, on one hand, Wall Street institutional traders are urgently reducing directional risk. Goldman Sachs’ trading division stated that extreme volatility makes holding large positions “very uncomfortable,” and recommended reducing position sizes. On the other hand, physical market demand remains exceptionally strong. Reports indicate that from Singapore to Sydney and China’s gold trading centers, a large number of retail investors are queuing to buy gold bars and jewelry, attempting to capitalize on the price pullback. This robust retail demand has provided some support for gold prices.

Although the short-term trend remains uncertain, mainstream institutions have not completely abandoned their long-term bullish outlook. Deutsche Bank reaffirmed its target of $6,000 per ounce for gold, believing that macroeconomic drivers remain unchanged. Goldman Sachs’ research team also maintained its forecast that gold will reach $5,400 by December 2026, citing ongoing central bank gold purchases and the potential for a Federal Reserve rate cut path. The market’s current focus is whether physical demand’s resilience can offset the pressure from technical breakdowns and institutional deleveraging.

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(Source: The Paper)