Silver Slides Below $60 for First Time in 2026, Pressuring Hecla and Pan American

Spot silver dropped below $60 an ounce for the first time this year, touching six-month lows in a slide of more than 9% driven by a hawkish Federal Reserve outlook and a strengthening U.S. dollar. The metal had traded as high as $61.63 earlier in July before the selloff accelerated.

The move weighed on silver miners. Hecla Mining, the largest silver producer in the U.S. and Canada, has also been contending with production issues at its Keno Hill operation in the Yukon, where harsh cold, lower ore grades, and mine-sequencing delays cut quarterly output to roughly 489,000 ounces. The company plans to nearly double 2026 exploration spending to $55 million.

Pan American Silver, which is guiding for 25 to 27 million ounces of silver production this year after a record fourth quarter, gave back gains from earlier in the month as broader pressure hit the sector. Analysts note that a sixth straight year of silver supply deficits could support prices longer term despite the near-term macro headwinds.