Silver prices crashed in a harrowing roller-coaster ride that underscored how quickly China's army of speculators can move global commodity markets — and how fast those gains can unravel. The white metal has been in the spotlight over the past year after dramatically outperforming gold. Prices surged about 170% in 2025 and climbed more than 60% again in early 2026, vaulting silver to $121 per troy ounce at its peak before the rally spectacularly broke down. Spot silver was trading around $77.10