The total value of tax and spending commitments in Ireland's budget plan will slightly exceed 8.6 billion euros.

(1) Deutsche Bank believes that silver may be shifting from a shortage to a surplus. According to the bank’s analyst Gary, the peak of the silver shortage has clearly passed, and a supply surplus could emerge as early as 2027. (2) Silver is currently trading at approximately $61 per ounce, up roughly 26% year-on-year. During the period of physical shortage in early 2026, it briefly reached about $120 per ounce. (3) As of the end of August, London commercial vaults held more than 914 million ounces of silver, with the freely available portion exceeding 300 million ounces, representing an increase of around 70% since October 2025. (4) Photovoltaic demand is shrinking rapidly, with Deutsche Bank expecting global silver consumption in the photovoltaic sector to decline by more than 20% this year. (5) Manufacturers are adopting finer contact wires and copper-coated pastes, with the amount of silver used per photovoltaic cell projected to decrease by about 17% by 2026. (6) Deutsche Bank forecasts an average silver price of approximately $70 per ounce in the second quarter of 2027.

(1) On October 5th, the Russian Ministry of Finance announced that it would increase its purchases of foreign exchange and gold by five times from October 7th to November 6th. (2) This purchase plan involves funds of approximately 279.42 billion rubles. (3) The arrangement indicates that Russia will significantly ramp up its gold purchases in October.

Spot platinum has just broken through the $1,670.00/oz mark, now quoted at $1,669.98/oz, down 2.40% on the day; the main Nymex platinum futures contract is currently quoted at $1,677.6/oz, down 1.85% on the day.

According to two EU diplomats, the International Energy Agency (IEA) Governing Board will hold an informal meeting at 13:00 local time today to discuss a proposal to release oil and diesel reserves.