markets

Claire Yubin Oh & David Crowther1/16/26

For retail traders, silver is still the new gold — and it’s sending trading volumes for one ETF booming

Silver is holding on to its gold medal — at least from retail traders. Per data from SwaggyStocks, the iShares Silver Trust has been the top trending ticker in the r/WallStreetBets subreddit over each of the past 12 hours, 1 day, and 1 week — with mentions over the past week roughly triple that of the SPDR Gold Shares ETF .

WSB top trending stocks — SwaggyStocks

Since really becoming popular with retail traders last October, gold and silver have only gained in status, with both seeming to make gains in both risk-off and risk-on environments.

Just this week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comment on the Department of Justice subpoenas gave both of the precious metals a chance to prove their mettle as a store of value, but silver’s volatility and relentlessly positive price action — prices have nearly tripled in the last year — are seeing it win over more volatility-seeking fans on Reddit. That increased retail attention is translating into serious trading activity, with volumes for the SLV ETF hitting an average turnover of $9.6 billion over the last five trading sessions, 61% more than what changed hands in GLD.

With super-high electrical conductivity, silver is widely used in electronics — making it more vulnerable to supply shocks. Indeed, the silver market is currently experiencing thin inventories in London (where benchmark silver prices are set) just as new export restrictions from China, a leading silver producer, started on January 1.

More Markets

See all Markets

markets

Max Knoblauch10h

American Eagle posts stronger-than-expected Q4 earnings and revenue

If American Eagle has seen farther, it is by standing on the shoulders of Sydney Sweeney.

The jeans seller posted adjusted earnings of $0.84 per share, ahead of the $0.71 expected by analysts polled by FactSet. It booked $1.76 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, versus the $1.74 billion consensus.

Shares initially climbed more than 5% after-hours before paring gains to about 2%.

“Compelling new product collections, supported by fresh marketing campaigns, led to higher demand trends in the quarter,” said CEO Jay Schottenstein.

American Eagle said it’s expecting same-store sales to grow by high single digits in the first quarter.

Marketing controversy has proved to be a powerful mover of denim for AE. In its third-quarter earnings call in December, AE said its partnership with Sydney Sweeney — together with a Travis Kelce partnership — had garnered more than 44 billion impressions. The retailer hit meme stock status last July when it initially launched its “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” campaign.

As of Wednesday’s close, American Eagle shares had climbed 120% since the Sweeney ad first landed.

Broadcom posts modest Q1 sales and earnings beats

The custom chip specialist just reported Q1 results.

Digital X Special Opens In Cologne

Rigetti Computing posts Q4 sales that fall short of expectations

The quantum computing firm just posted Q4 results.

“Euro-Q-Exa" quantum computer

Tasha Matsumoto

Stocks rebound as investors’ risk appetite resumes

Investors shifted their focus from the war in Iran, resuming a risk-on mood amid surprise economic data.

Josh Giddey #3 of the Chicago Bulls grabs a rebound during the second half against the Detroit Pistons on October 22, 2025 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.

markets

Investors are itching to buy the dip in memory stocks

The intense drubbing in South Korean stocks, with the benchmark Korean index (KOSPI) falling nearly 20% in its first two trading days of the week following a Monday holiday, represented a serious threat to the hottest AI trade: memory stocks.

South Korea’s market is dominated by two high-bandwidth memory giants: SK Hynix and Samsung.

After Tuesday’s tumble, US investors seemingly said enough is enough: it’s a buy-the-dip opportunity.

US memory stocks like Micron, Sandisk, Western Digital, and Seagate Technology Holdings are posting massive gains on the day. The advance comes amid positive commentary at a Morgan Stanley conference on demand for memory chips.

Even more interestingly, the iShares MSCI South Korea ETF is up big today despite the KOSPI falling 12% overnight, its largest drop on record. The ETF’s outperformance of the South Korean equity gauge is the largest since 2008, as the global financial crisis raged.

The daily performance of these two can differ materially since they trade at different times and don’t track precisely the same things. US investors are making the bet that a potential break in this momentum trade and the potential for an unwind of retail leverage in South Korean markets be damned, big drops in memory stocks are meant to be bought.

Latest Stories

Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate, including Robinhood Markets, Inc., Robinhood Financial LLC, Robinhood Securities, LLC, Robinhood Crypto, LLC, or Robinhood Money, LLC.

©2026 Sherwood Media, LLC