Key Highlights

● Silver traded around $54.44 an ounce, roughly unchanged.

● December gold futures settled lower at $4,051.60.

● Silver's industrial demand side may have offered support.

● Rising yields and a firmer dollar weighed on both metals.

Precious metals took different paths after the Federal Reserve's decision. Gold futures slipped, while silver held its ground, trading around $54.44 an ounce, roughly unchanged on the day, even as December gold futures settled lower at $4,051.60.

Gold's softness came as long-dated Treasury yields jumped, with the 10-year yield posting its largest daily gain in a month, since gold pays no interest, raising the opportunity cost of holding it.

Why Silver Held Up

Silver has a dual identity. Like gold, it is a precious metal that attracts safe-haven buying, but it also has substantial industrial uses, from electronics to solar panels, tying it more closely to the economic cycle. That industrial side may have helped on a day when the economic outlook looked strong.

The Fed's statement said economic activity is expanding at a strong pace, and chipmakers rallied broadly, though not all industrial signals were positive, with Enphase Energy tumbling after a weak solar demand outlook.

The Fed Backdrop

The Fed left its benchmark rate range unchanged in a 10-2 vote, with two officials dissenting in favor of a hike, and the statement said inflation remains elevated. Expectations of higher rates generally weigh on precious metals.

Geopolitics provided some safe-haven support, with Middle East tensions keeping oil elevated, while the dollar index edged down slightly, which may have helped silver hold steady.