Silver is half precious metal, half industrial metal, so it often moves faster than gold. This guide covers the contracts, what drives the price and the risks to know before you trade.
Silver in 30 seconds
Silver is the second most traded futures contract on Indian commodity exchanges. In April to June 2026, it made up 29.7% of MCX futures turnover, just behind gold at 34.5%. Its rupee price follows the global dollar price, adjusted for the USD/INR rate, the 15% import duty and local demand. Silver is both a precious metal and an industrial one. That double role makes it swing much harder than gold.
Contract snapshot
| Contract | Lot size | Price quoted per | Value of a ₹1 move | Expiry day | Delivery unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver | 30 kg | 1 kg | ₹30.00 | 5th of the expiry month | 30 kg bar |
| Silver Mini | 5 kg | 1 kg | ₹5.00 | Last day of the month | Five 1 kg bars |
| Silver Micro | 1 kg | 1 kg | ₹1.00 | Last day of the month | 1 kg bar |
| Silver 100 | 100 grams | 10 grams | ₹10.00 | Last day of the month | 100 gram bar |
If an expiry day falls on a holiday, the contract expires on the previous working day. For example, the December 2026 Silver contract expires on 4 Dec 2026.
- Trading hours: 9:00 AM to 11:30 PM while US daylight saving is on. From 2 Nov 2026, trading runs until 11:55 PM.
- Tick size: ₹1 on every silver contract. For Silver 100, that is ₹1 per 10 grams.
- Expiry months: Silver (30 kg) expires in March, May, July, September and December. Silver Mini and Silver Micro expire in February, April, June, August and November. Silver 100, launched on 1 Jun 2026, expires every month.
- Margin: at least 10% of contract value, plus a 1% extreme-loss margin. MCX adds extra margin in volatile spells. In October 2025, it set an 11.5% minimum, and it removed an extra 7% margin in February 2026.
- Daily price limit: 4% in either direction, widened to 6% without a pause. If 6% is breached, trading pauses for 15 minutes, and the limit widens to 9%.
- Options: available on Silver (30 kg) and Silver Mini. Silver Micro and Silver 100 are futures only.
- Also trades on: NSE, with silver futures of 30 kg, 5 kg and 100 g.
What moves the silver price
- Industrial demand. Industry uses more than half of the world’s silver. Solar panels, electronics and electric vehicles are big users, so factory data matters.
- US interest rates. Like gold, silver pays no interest. Falling real US rates make it cheaper to hold .
- The US dollar. Silver is priced in dollars globally. A weaker dollar usually lifts the global pric e.
- The rupee. A weaker rupee raises the Indian silver price even if the global price stays fl at.
- Supply gaps. Most silver is mined as a by-product of copper, lead, zinc and gold. Supply cannot react quickly, and the market has run short of metal every year since 2 021.
- Indian demand and duties. Festive buying of coins and utensils lifts local demand. Import duty was cut to 6% in July 2024 and raised to 15% from 13 May 2026.
Silver over five years
| End of | Price in India (₹ per kg) | Global price ($ per ounce) | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | about 62,000 | about 23.3 | Fell about 12% in dollars after the 2020 rally |
| 2022 | about 69,500 | about 24.0 | Late-year rally; rupee weakness lifted Indian prices |
| 2023 | about 74,000 | about 23.8 | Flat in dollars; steady demand from solar makers |
| 2024 | about 87,000 | about 28.9 | Import duty cut to 6%; up about 21% in dollars |
| 2025 | about 2,35,000 | about 72 | Silver’s best year on record, up about 150% in dollars |
| 30 Sep 2026 | about 2,26,000 | about 63 | Record high in Jan 2026, then a sharp crash; import duty raised to 15% |
The all-time high so far came on 29 Jan 2026. MCX silver crossed ₹4,07,000 per kg, and the global price went above $121 per ounce. By June 2026, the global price had dropped to about $54.
Ways to get silver exposure in India
| Route | What you hold | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Silver futures | A contract on a future price | Active traders, hedgers |
| Silver options | The right to buy or sell a silver futures contract | Defined-risk strategies |
| Silver ETFs | Units backed by physical silver | Long-term investors using a demat account |
| Silver fund of funds | Units of a fund that invests in silver ETFs | SIP investors without a demat account |
| Physical silver | Coins, bars, utensils, jewellery (3% GST) | Personal use, gifting |
Silver ETFs have been available in India since early 2022.
How to read silver alongside other m arkets
- Silver up more than gold: usually a sign of strong risk appetite or industrial buying. Silver tends to rise faster in rallies and fall faster in se ll-offs.
- Silver up, rupee down: some of the rise is currency, not the global price. Compare with COMEX silver to separate the tw o.
- The gold-silver ratio: the number of silver ounces needed to buy one ounce of gold. It stood near 70 in October 2026, against about 46 at the January 2026 extreme. A high ratio means silver is cheap relativ e to gold.
- Silver and copper: both depend on factory demand. A falling copper price can warn of weaker industrial demand for silver.
R isks to know
- Leverage: futures need only a margin of about 10% or more, so losses can exceed wha t you put in.
- Sharp swings: silver often moves two to three times as much as gold in a day. In late January 2026, it fell by record amounts within hours.
- Overnight gaps: silver reacts to US data released late in Indian evening hours.
- Expiry and delivery: silver contracts end in compulsory delivery. Most brokers make you exit before the delivery period starts, a few day s before expiry.
Quick FAQs
Why is silver in India costlier than the international price? The 15% import duty, 3% GST and the USD/INR rate are built int o the rupee price.
What is the smallest silver contract? Silver 100, at 100 grams. Its price is qu oted p er 10 grams.
Is silver riskier than gold?Usually, yes. It is a smaller market with heavy industrial use, so its price swin gs are much bigger.
Do I need a separate account to trade silver futures? No, but you need the commodity segment activated. In the FYERS app, go to Profile, then Segments, activate Commodity, upload income proof (such as your latest ITR, 6 months’ bank statement or 3 months’ salary slips) and e-s ign with Aadhaar OTP.