Silver price plunged ₹1,479 to ₹2.31 lakh per kilogram in futures trade on Tuesday amid escalating geopolitical tensions in West Asia and rising inflation concerns dampening investor sentiment.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange, the white metal for May delivery decreased by ₹1,479, or 0.63 per cent, to ₹2,31,900 per kg in a business turnover of 5,873 lots.

Analysts said silver remained under pressure as traders monitored geopolitical developments in West Asia and their potential impact on global growth and monetary policy.

In global markets, silver futures on the Comex for the May contract fell nearly 1 per cent to $72.41 per ounce in New York.

Silver hovered near $73 per ounce as investors focused on US President Donald Trump’s threat to target Iranian civilian infrastructure unless his demands are met, heightening concerns about the economic impact of a prolonged conflict, Jigar Trivedi, Senior Research Analyst at IndusInd Securities, said.

Trump warned he could “strike Iranian power plants and bridges” if his conditions are not met by Tuesday, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Silver has remained under pressure since the conflict began, declining more than 20 per cent, as surging energy prices fuelled inflation fears and increased the likelihood that central banks may delay interest rate cuts or even consider to raise them, Trivedi said.

Markets now expect the US Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged for the remainder of the year, compared with earlier projections of two rate cuts, he added.

Published on April 7, 2026

India is set to import the most oil from Venezuela in almost six years, helping the world’s third-largest crude importer replace Middle East grades disrupted by the Iran war.

More than 12 million barrels are headed to India’s west coast this month from the South American producer, the most since February 2020, according to data from Kpler. The April-arriving cargoes were likely secured before the recent disruptions in supplies from the Middle East, underscoring a longer-term strategic shift rather than a purely reactive move, said Sumit Ritolia, a lead research analyst at the data intelligence firm. 

The South Asian nation, which imports about 90% of its crude, has been seeking alternatives after the Iran war disrupted flows through the Strait of Hormuz, which typically transits almost 40% of the country’s oil supplies. Venezuela produces similar sulfur-rich blends, and India used to be a major buyer from the OPEC producer before the trade was curbed by US sanctions, which Washington eased after the capture of President Nicolás Maduro in January. 

The Ottoman Sincerity — a Suezmax tanker carrying almost 1 million barrels of asphaltic Boscan crude loaded using ship-to-ship transfers off the Carribean island of Aruba — has already arrived at Reliance Industries Ltd.’s Sikka port, and is the first Venezuelan cargo to reach India in a year. Reliance, which has a US license to buy directly from PDVSA, also loaded its first cargo from the state-owned producer on the Bahama-flagged very large crude carrier Helios this week, moving away from earlier purchases routed via Vitol Group and Trafigura.

The heavy Venezuelan barrels tend to yield higher proportions of middle distillates such as diesel and jet fuel, which is significant in the current environment where these markets remain structurally tight, Ritolia said. Most of the crude is the nation’s flagship Merey blend, the Kpler data show. 

Reliance didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comments on its Venezuelan imports.

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Published on April 7, 2026