The precious metals market showed signs of stabilization on February 2, 2026, after the chaotic sell-off on January 30, 2026, where gold prices dropped 16% intraday from $5,594.82 to below $5,000 before recovering to $4,745 per ounce (Comex gold futures settlement data, CME Group, January 30, 2026), and silver plunged 39% from $121 to $85 before rebounding to $88.50 (Kitco live spot pricing and Trading Economics CFD data as of January 30, 2026, 4:00 PM EST). This gold and silver volatility — the worst daily drop for gold since the early 1980s and for silver since March 1980 (CNBC, January 30, 2026; Barron's, January 30, 2026) — was triggered by President Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair (at least that's the cover story), but recent calm raises questions: is this an investment opportunity or false signal?
For mining investors — those tracking TSX gold stocks and Canadian gold mining stocks — this precious metals market volatility highlights the role of safe haven demand gold silver in uncertain times. This analysis explores gold and silver prices post-crash, precious metals market calm, gold silver price action recovery, gold silver outlook for 2026, gold silver correction implications, gold silver technical analysis, and strategies for gold silver volatility hedging.
The January 30 Chaos: A Hawkish Shock and Its Aftermath
The immediate catalyst was Trump's nomination of Warsh on January 30, 2026 (White House press release, January 30, 2026, 12:30 PM EST). Warsh's so called hawkish stance (dissenting against QE in 2010 Fed minutes, Federal Reserve transcripts released 2015) suggested tighter policy, strengthening the dollar (DXY +0.8% to 102.5, Trading Economics, January 30, 2026) and raising yields (10-year Treasury +5 bps to 4.15%, Trading Economics, January 30, 2026).
From ZeroHedge's February 2, 2026 article "When Will Gold And Silver Bounce: The World's Top Precious Metal Traders Share Their Views" (02:35 PM EST): "The action over the past few trading days has felt similar to the October 21 sell-off, if much more extreme, where Goldman believes the vol move from a large short-dated GLD block triggered model liquidation, which was amplified by high-frequency traders accelerating downward momentum on GLD."
ZeroHedge's February 1, 2026 article "Overnight, Goldman's research and trading desk teams published their views" (06:05 PM EST) notes: "Financial markets reacted to the appointment with a small rise in long-term bond yields, a rebound in the US dollar, and a drop in precious metals prices."
Why gold prices are falling and why is gold crashing today? ETF liquidation amplified the drop, with SLV's worst day since 2006 (-13 z-score) and GLD's (-9 z-score) (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 11:10 AM EST).
Gold and Silver Calm: Signs of Stabilization and Trader Views
By February 2, 2026, markets calmed, with gold holding near $4,745 (Bloomberg, February 2, 2026) and silver above $88 (Reuters, February 2, 2026). ZeroHedge's February 2, 2026 article (02:35 PM EST): "We just had another striking overnight session in gold/silver, which extended their losses before stabilizing well below their recent record highs."
Goldman traders: "We’ve reduced a huge amount of our directional risk. We think medium term, the structural trade is still there from central bank purchases... One ounce of Gold is just a lot more notional than it was, and it's a lot more volatile than it was" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Goldman research (Struyven): "We still forecast a Dec26 gold price of $5,400... Risks to our gold price forecast remained significantly skewed to the upside" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Precious Metals Trading (Gupta/Gilliard): "We think the playbook is similar to October 2025 sell-off; the franchise still believe in the structural bull case, but price moved too high too quickly" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Dominik Sperzel (Heraeus): "In my career it’s definitely the wildest that I have seen... We are sold out in certain bar sizes, weeks in advance, and people — they still buy" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Jay Hatfield (Infrastructure Capital Advisors): "It turned into a momentum trade, not a fundamental trade. We were just riding it, waiting for this type of thing to happen" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Retail resilience: Bloomberg queues in Singapore/Sydney/Thailand despite $4,400 gold (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST). In China: "Gold is relatively strong; I see a lot of dip buyers" (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Gold Silver Technical Analysis: Correction or Break?
Gold silver technical analysis shows overbought correction: RSI above 70 pre-crash (FXStreet, January 30, 2026). Gold volatility 25% implied (CME, January 30, 2026); silver 35% (CME, January 30, 2026).
Gold support: $4,500 psychological, $4,200 200-day MA (FXStreet, January 30, 2026).
Silver support: $80 psychological, $70 200-day MA (FXStreet, January 30, 2026).
Precious metals market volatility spiked, but calm suggests exhaustion (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Gold Silver Outlook: Bullish Despite Dip
Gold silver outlook 2026: Goldman $5,400 gold Dec 2026 (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST); JPM $6,300 gold (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 11:10 AM EST); Deutsche Bank $6,000 gold (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 11:10 AM EST). Fundamentals: central bank buying 60 tonnes/month (Goldman, ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Safe haven demand gold silver remains strong (Bloomberg queues, ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Gold silver correction is "healthy" in bull market (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Strategies for Mining Stock Investors
When to buy gold and silver stocks? During dips like this, per traders (ZeroHedge, February 2, 2026, 02:35 PM EST).
Silver Stock TSX picks: Pan American (PAAS.TO), Hecla (HL), First Majestic (FR.TO).
Gold investing strategy: Blend producers/juniors.
Conclusion: Calm Signals Opportunity
Gold and silver calm after chaos suggests rebound. When to buy gold and silver? Now, for long-term holders.
Remain unflinching,
CanadianMiningReport.com
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Author
Ben McGregor authors the Weekly Roundup at CanadianMiningReport.com, providing sharp analysis of the metals and mining sector. With a talent for spotting trends, Ben distills complex market shifts into clear, engaging insights on TSXV junior miners. His weekly updates cover gold, copper, uranium, and more, blending data-driven perspectives with a knack for identifying opportunities. A vital resource for investors, Ben’s work navigates the dynamic junior mining landscape with precision.