We stand corrected. When silver closed at $50.34 per ounce (CAD) on June 9, Canadian Coin News reported it as a new Canadian high. However, as later pointed out by Trends Editor Michael Findlay, the actual all-time high for silver in Canadian dollars was set more than four decades ago – on Jan. 17, 1980.
On that day, silver hit US $49.95 per ounce, and with the prevailing exchange rate of 1.1613, the price translated to an estimated CAD $57.98 per ounce.
The 1980 peak was driven largely by the now-infamous attempt by Texas oil billionaires Nelson Bunker Hunt and William Herbert Hunt to corner the silver market. Beginning in the late 1970s, the brothers amassed enormous silver holdings – both physical bullion and futures contracts – believing it would be a hedge against inflation and the declining value of the U.S. dollar. Their aggressive accumulation pushed silver prices to historic heights, culminating in that dramatic January spike.
But the market couldn’t sustain such speculation. As the Hunts’ influence grew, regulators responded by increasing margin requirements and curbing excessive leverage. The resulting sell-off on March 27, 1980 – a day now known as “Silver Thursday” – caused silver prices to collapse. The brothers were unable to meet margin calls, and their positions unraveled, sending shockwaves through financial markets and prompting tighter oversight of commodities trading.
Silver’s resurgence this year has been particularly striking. On June 9, it surpassed the $50 mark in Canadian funds for the first time since 1980, closing at $50.34 per ounce. Just over a week later, on June 17, it climbed to US $37.14 per ounce – or approximately CAD $50.80 – driven by strong industrial demand, a weakening U.S. dollar, and investor interest in precious metals amid economic uncertainty.
Gold has also seen substantial gains this year. From Jan. 1 to mid-June, the gold spot price rose from US $2,624 to around US $3,398 – a nearly 30 per cent increase. In Canadian dollars, gold moved from about CAD $3,772 to CAD $4,640 over the same period, an increase of roughly 23 per cent. The difference in percentage gains reflects a strengthening Canadian dollar, which muted the effect of rising U.S. dollar prices