Investing.com - Silver futures were higher on Wednesday, as investors looked ahead to the release of key U.S. economic data to gauge the strength of the U.S. economy and the need for further stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, silver futures for September delivery traded at USD19.46 a troy ounce during European morning trade, up 0.8% on the day.
Comex silver prices rose by as much as 1.4% earlier in the day to hit a session high of USD19.58 a troy ounce.
Silver futures fell to a low of USD18.18 a troy ounce on June 28, the cheapest level since August 24, 2010.
Silver prices were likely to find support at USD18.18 a troy ounce, the low from June 28 and resistance at USD20.19, the high from June 24.
The U.S. was to release the ADP report on nonfarm payrolls, as well as the weekly government report on initial jobless claims one day ahead of schedule, as well as data on the trade balance.
In addition, the ISM was to produce a report on U.S. service sector activity.
Market players also looked ahead to Friday’s highly-anticipated U.S. nonfarm payrolls data for indications of how the recovery in the U.S. labor market is progressing.
Any improvement in the U.S. economy was likely to reinforce the view that the Federal Reserve will begin to taper its bond purchase program in the coming months.
Moves in the silver price this year have largely tracked shifting expectations as to whether the U.S. central bank would end its bond-buying program sooner-than-expected.
Elsewhere on the Comex, gold for August delivery eased up 0.1% to trade at USD1,244.95 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery added 0.3% to trade at USD3.153 a pound.
