Silver plunges to year nadir, dollar hits year high

Silver futures plummeted two percent in American trade to July 10, 2017 lows, while the dollar index rose to one-year peak, following earlier data from the US, and after the conclusion of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's Congressional testimony yesterday.

AS of 04:38 GMT, silver futures due on September 15 fell 1.98% to $15.27 an ounce from the opening of $15.58, marking year lows, while the dollar index rose 0.42% to 95.48 from the opening of 95.08. 

Stellar US Employment Data 

Earlier US data showed unemployment claims fell 8 thousand to 207 thousand from 215K, beating expectations of 220K, while continuing claims for the week ending July 7 rose 8 thousand to 1.751 million from 1.743 million, missing estimates of 1.729 million. 

The Philly Fed Manufacturing Index rose to 25.7 in July from 19.9 in June, beating estimates of 21.6, while the CB leading index rose 0.5% in June, beating estimates of 0.4%, and compared to May's no-change. 

White house trade councilor Peter Navarro asserted in earlier remarks that President Donald Trump's decisions are not destructive as some are painting it, noting that China is the only country hurting the US economy, while the US administration believes in free trade in a world that lacks it. 

In his two-day testimony before the two chambers of Congress, Fed Chair Jerome Powell pointed to strong economic growth this year with continued improvement in the labor market and inflation rates, while cautioning from short-term consequences to trade protectionism.