Silver Futures Margin & Contract Specifications

What Are Silver Futures?

Silver futures (symbol SI) are standardized futures contracts with silver as the underlying asset, traded on the COMEX market of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Each contract represents 5,000 troy ounces of silver, quoted in U.S. dollars per ounce.
In addition to the standard silver futures, CME also offers Micro Silver (SIL) contracts, each representing 1,000 troy ounces, designed for investors with smaller capital.

Factors Affecting Silver Prices

U.S. dollar exchange rate:

Since silver is priced in U.S. dollars, a stronger dollar typically pressures silver prices downward, while a weaker dollar usually lifts prices.

Interest rates and inflation:

Although silver has industrial demand, it is also regarded as a precious metal investment. When interest rates fall or inflation rises, investors tend to increase allocations to silver, pushing prices higher.

Industrial demand:

Silver is widely used in electronics, solar panels, medical equipment, and more. Global manufacturing activity and green energy policies directly affect silver demand.

Correlation with gold prices:

Silver and gold are both precious metals, and their price movements are often highly correlated. When gold rises, silver usually follows.

Geopolitics and safe-haven demand:

Wars, geopolitical conflicts, or financial crises drive investors to seek safe havens in precious metals, boosting silver prices.

Market speculation and capital flows:

Compared with gold, the silver market is relatively smaller in scale, making it more prone to sharp volatility from speculative trading.

Trading Hours and Halts

CME Globex electronic trading:

• Opening: Sunday 6:00 PM ET → Monday 6:00 AM Taiwan time
• Closing: Friday 5:00 PM ET → Saturday 5:00 AM Taiwan time

Daily maintenance break:

5:00–6:00 PM ET (5:00–6:00 AM Taiwan time)

Price limit mechanism:

If silver prices fluctuate excessively, the exchange may implement temporary trading halts to control market risk.

Summary

Silver futures (SI/SIL) are commodities with dual characteristics of industrial demand and precious metal investment. Their prices are influenced by the U.S. dollar, interest rate policy, industrial usage, and safe-haven sentiment. Compared with gold, silver tends to be more volatile, offering greater opportunities for speculative and leveraged trading.

The standard contract (SI) suits larger-scale or professional investors seeking long-term hedging.

The micro contract (SIL) has a lower threshold, making it accessible to smaller investors or beginners.

Silver Margin

How much money is needed to trade futures? At the beginning, the required margin is the initial margin. While holding a position, the margin after deducting floating profits and losses must remain above the maintenance margin; otherwise, a margin call will be issued. For day-trading margin, only half of the margin is required, provided the position is closed before the market closes.

Foreign Futures

Silver Contract Specifications

Here is a summary for traders of the contract specifications, exchange, trading hours, minimum price fluctuation, and available trading months for SilverFutures, Micro Silver FuturesFutures.

SilverLast Trading Day

Futures