(Updates prices)
* Some volatility to persist in silver, analysts say
* Record jump in iShares Silver Trust (NYSE:SLV) holdings on Tuesday
By Eileen Soreng
Feb 3 (Reuters) - Silver rose on Wednesday, helped by hopes global stimulus measures would prompt a pick-up in industrial demand, after a sharp decline from a near eight-year peak scaled with the help of a social media-inspired buying frenzy.
Spot silver XAG= rose 0.6% to $26.76 per ounce at 1:49 p.m. EST (1849 GMT). It fell more than 8% on Tuesday.
The recent moves have attracted a lot of new interest in silver, "not necessarily Reddit investors, but just people out there looking at silver as an undervalued asset," said Bob Haberkorn, senior market strategist at RJO Futures.
"There is an increased physical demand for silver at this point."
Prices surged to $30.03 on Monday after retail investors attempted to replicate a GameStop (NYSE:GME) style rally. buying spree left silver dealers scrambling to find supplies of coins and bars. frenzy fizzled, partly after the Chicago Mercantile Exchange hiked margins for holding silver futures to rein in the market gyrations. expect some volatility to continue.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has called a meeting of top officials that could clamp tougher markets regulation for hedge funds, small investors and stockbrokers. silver moves in tandem with safe-haven gold under normal circumstances, it also closely follows economic cues because of its industrial applications.
A weaker dollar and expectations of stronger economic activity amid easy monetary policy globally, make "a strong argument to see higher silver prices", and the recent buying frenzy "made it much faster than expected", UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said.
Reflecting sentiment, holdings in iShares Silver Trust, the largest silver-backed ETF HLDISHAST=XAG , jumped by a record 57.8 million ounces on Tuesday. GOL/ETF
Spot gold XAU= fell 0.2% to $1,833.93 per ounce. U.S. gold futures GCv1 settled up 0.1% at $1,835.10.
A steepening U.S. Treasury yield curve and a jump in equities are pressuring gold, said Daniel Ghali, commodity strategist at TD Securities. US/ .N
Platinum XPT= rose 0.8% to $1,103.04 and palladium XPD= gained 1.2% to $2,269.69.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Silver prices and iShares Silver ETF
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