The AI trade has taken many forms this year, from surging semiconductors to record-setting ETFs and a fresh breakout in the Mag-7 stocks.
Now, traders are setting their sights on an old variation of that theme that has sat out the most recent leg of the rally: silver.
Silver prices surged 7% Monday to the highest since March and copper added 3.3% to $6.50, a new record. Both metals are used for their thermal conductivity and electrical wiring in data-centers crucial to handling AI demand, but silver appears to have captured more retail interest.
Trading in the iShares Silver ETF (SLV) followed suit with options action leaning heavily bullish. More than twice as many calls traded than puts, with more calls bought than sold and more than 90,000 calls bought compared to just 31,000 puts bought.
iShares Silver Trust, YTD
At least one trader was bullish enough to both sell puts and buy calls in a trade with over a million dollars in exposure. They sold more than 1,000 of the 70-strike puts expiring June 18 for $259,000 then applied those proceeds towards a million-dollar purchase of over 1,900 80-strike calls in SLV expiring the same day, looking for an 11% rally over the next 5.5 weeks.
SLV soared more than 300% from the start of 2025 through its high in January, but has underperformed this year’s blistering semiconductor rally as the precious metals trade struggled, perhaps as interest rates fluctuate and commodity bulls focused on the volatility in crude oil.
