Silver Prices Flat Today, Government Shutdown Drags On

NEW YORK (Oct 8) The government shutdown drags on for another day with no indication of ending. If anything, the split between Republicans and Democrats is worsening. Republicans on the Senate side are now joining House members and are against a clean debt ceiling raise.

Stock futures are pushing slightly higher in pre-market trading. The Dow is showing a 10 point gain, the Nasdaq 3 points and the S&P 500 1.5 points.

Silver prices are pretty much flat this morning as stocks try to push more into positive territory. Investors will be eying Alcoa this morning as they will release their third quarter earnings today. Silver is currently trading at $22.41/oz.

Wall Street will be watching Washington closely today. Will Republicans and Democrats come to any sort of solution on the debt ceiling or government shutdown? It looks unlikely today. Both sides are digging their heels in, so don’t expect anything until the debt ceiling date gets closer. Should the shutdown impasse enter its third week, investors will probably start letting their voice be heard. Volatility will be even higher next week if no deal is done. Congress has about a week and a half to get together on the debt ceiling. No talks have even been scheduled yet.

Analysts warn a default could push us into a larger economic disaster than the 2007-08 crisis. A prolonged government shutdown could also have big effects on the country’s GDP, which in turn would affect stocks.