Silver still trading at 120$ in China

[Walker491]

Silver hasn’t dropped much in China. In China, it’s trading around $120/oz, while in the US it’s around $84/oz.

Silver last traded on the Shanghai Exchange until around 11:30 PM IST. By that time, silver was already trading at approximately $85/oz. For reference, I have also attached a screenshot showing the LTP of silver from the Shanghai Futures Exchange

If we have a look at the screenshot the price was at 25690RMB/kg when converted it comes somewhere in the range of 120$/oz.

Even if we factor in a 10–20% premium, prices are still trading at a significant premium. What could be the plausible reasons for this?

[t7support]

Massive up-and-down moves in global silver prices have fueled widespread conjecture on social media. Apparent price differences across markets reflect the reality that we do not operate in a truly free global market, nor in a fully free-trade ecosystem.

In particular, Chinese silver prices are structurally distorted relative to US prices due to VAT, physical delivery premiums, FX translation effects, and capital controls, making direct comparisons misleading.

Even the US Silver eagle is quoting significantly higher than COMEX prices because of minting cost, distribution cost and retail mark up cost.