Palladium Jumps Nearly 7% and Silver 5% as Precious Metals Rally Broadens After Midterm Sweep

Palladium and silver led a broad rally in precious metals on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, outpacing gold as the dollar and Treasury yields fell after Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress. The gains marked a sharp turn for the so-called white metals, which had dropped to multi-month lows in late October during a selloff that also hit technology stocks.

Prices at midday

As of about 11:59 a.m. ET, palladium futures were up $62.40, or 6.7%, at $996.00 an ounce after reaching as high as $999.50, according to Yahoo Finance data. Silver futures had gained 5.0% to $52.25 an ounce, and platinum futures were up 4.3% at $1,491.70. Gold futures for December delivery rose 3.4% to $4,075.80.

Earlier in the day, at 1234 GMT, or 7:34 a.m. ET, spot silver was up 4.8% at $52.13, platinum had risen 3.6% to $1,467.60 and palladium had climbed 6.5% to $995.06, Reuters reported in a story published by Kitco. Spot gold was then at $4,046.74 and on track for its biggest daily gain since Aug. 19, Reuters said.

The moves come days after a steep decline. Silver futures ended Oct. 30 at about $49.10 and palladium futures ended Nov. 3 at about $930, according to Yahoo Finance daily data, compared with about $60.10 and $1,201.40 at the end of September.

Why the metals moved

"The elections appear to have boosted gold prices as investors become more worried about the fiscal outlook," Hamad Hussain, senior climate and commodities economist at Capital Economics, told Reuters. "Investor concern about fiscal risks is also supporting the price of other precious metals."

A weaker dollar makes dollar-priced metals cheaper for buyers using other currencies. Kitco News reported that the dollar retreated to its lowest level in about a month before recovering part of its losses, while Treasury yields fell. The 10-year Treasury yield was about 4.90% late in the morning, down from 4.95% on Tuesday, according to Yahoo Finance data.

NDTV Profit noted that palladium prices had fallen significantly as growing electric vehicle adoption reduced demand for the metal in catalytic converters, though a shift toward hybrid vehicles has given some support to palladium, platinum and rhodium. Kitco said silver had recovered more strongly than gold as lower yields improved sentiment, but that silver's industrial exposure leaves it sensitive to restrictive monetary policy, manufacturing demand and any renewed decline in global risk appetite.

The Fed remains a headwind

Hussain cautioned that the outlook for interest rates could limit the rally. "The fact that the Fed is likely to remain hawkish due to the inflationary backdrop means that the scope for further gains in gold prices is limited," he said, adding that because gold has increasingly moved in step with equities, continued weakness in tech stocks could also weigh on prices. Traders saw an 82% chance that the Federal Reserve will raise rates in December, according to CME's FedWatch tool, Reuters reported. Higher rates raise the opportunity cost of holding metals that pay no interest.

The Fed left its benchmark rate unchanged at 3.75% to 4.00% last week, with two policymakers favoring an immediate quarter-point increase, and its next meeting is Dec. 8-9, Kitco reported. Data released Wednesday showed private employers added 86,000 jobs in October, according to ADP, ahead of Friday's government jobs report.

Gold and the AI trade

In an interview with Kitco News at the New Orleans Investment Conference, Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, said gold's drop below $4,000 on Oct. 30 looked like forced selling rather than a change in fundamentals. He said gold had been trading in an "unusual tight correlation" with the S&P 500. "Gold is treated like an AI stock today, which it's not," he said.

Kitco noted that central banks bought a net 321 tonnes of gold in the third quarter, according to the World Gold Council, and that voters approved at least 33 local measures restricting data centers on Nov. 3, according to Redbud Consulting. Kitco also reported, citing Bloomberg, that the U.S. Treasury on Wednesday dropped the words "at least" from its pledge to keep note and bond sales steady, a change that could open the door to fewer long-dated bond sales as soon as 2027.

Other data on the calendar this week include weekly jobless claims on Thursday and the October employment report on Friday, both at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Sources: Reuters (via Kitco), Kitco News, NDTV Profit, ADP Research, all Nov. 4, 2026; Yahoo Finance market data as of about 11:59 a.m. ET.