Silver jumped past the $65-per-ounce mark for the first time on Wednesday, while gold climbed higher after US jobs data showed a softening labor market, rekindling expectations of further rate cuts next year and boosting demand for precious metals.
Spot silver was up 3.9% at $66.28 an ounce after rising to an all-time high of $66.52 earlier in the session. Spot gold prices rose 0.8% to $4,337.85 an ounce by 0552 GMT.
US gold futures gained 0.8% to $4,368.60.
"There is a major short squeeze (speculative trade) happening in silver... and we are not seeing the supply side responding the way it should have after the US added silver to the critical minerals list," said Kunal Shah, head of research at Nirmal Bang Commodities in Mumbai.
"Every country planning to enter the data center-AI space will need more of silver," Shah said, noting that current trends could push silver towards $70 in the near term.
The rally followed US data showing the unemployment rate rose to 4.6% in November, above a Reuters poll forecast of 4.4%.
The unemployment data has definitely helped precious metals and weakened the dollar, prompting investors to look for other asset classes offering higher returns as a hedge against risk, GoldSilver Central MD Brian Lan said.
Investors now await the US consumer price index data on Thursday and the personal consumption expenditures index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, on Friday.
Last week, the Fed delivered its third and final quarter-point rate cut for the year, while Chair Jerome Powell's accompanying comments were perceived as less hawkish than expected.
Traders still expect two cuts of 25 basis points each in 2026.
Non-yielding assets like bullion typically perform well in low-interest-rate environments.
Elsewhere, platinum was up 3.6% at $1,916.80, its highest in more than 17 years since July 2008, while palladium added 0.7% to $1,615.28, a two-month high.
