Commodity Chart Of The Day: Silver - $26 Is The Line In The Sand

The $26 level has acted as silver's support for over two years now. And after a 10% slide over the past three weeks, including today's 6% drop, we're once again challenging this all-important line in the sand.

Will $26 hold this time? Maybe not… yet I remain a long-term silver bull and see lower prices as a buying opportunity.

It's been a painstaking ride for silver buyers, my clients included. Fortunately, most outright long futures positions are hedged off with some sort of options exposure. It usually makes sense to sell calls or buy puts against at least a portion of large long positions. Silver is no exception.

Now, let's take a look at sentiment… which has turned extremely negative.

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"Calling all contrarians" … "Calling any contrarians"

Silver sentiment is turning more negative by the day:

· Gold is now trading under a psychologically important level ($1,500), likely triggering a flood of sell stop orders and shaking out weak longs.

· Oh, and… Goldman Sachs (GS) is now predicting a bear market in metals, including gold and silver.

· Meanwhile, Citibank (C) came out today claiming the end of the commodity bull market has come.

· And adding insult to injury… the equity bull market rages on, with overall bullish complacency aiding the recent rout in metals.

· All we need now is a Newsweek or Time magazine cover proclaiming the death of commodities… and we'll be able to call the bottom.

If you haven't guessed it -- I fully subscribe to the theory of being a contrarian at sentiment extremes. As weak hands let go of their longs, I will take silver off their hands and be a buyer with my clients.

Whether we've fully put in a bottom is not the point. We could easily fall th! rough $26 before hitting rock bottom. But I'm more concerned where prices will be in the coming months, not days. I expect prices closer to $32-34/ounce by Q3 and aim to use this two-year long setback as a buying opportunity within what I see as a longer-term bull market.

I recommend wading into bullish trade slowly and considering incorporating options hedges.

Risk Disclaimer: The opinions contained herein are for general information only and not tailored to any specific investor's needs or investment goals. Any opinions expressed in this article are as of the date indicated. Trading futures, options, and Forex involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. (More...)