This Weekly Financial Markets Update reviews the top market headlines: Silver Reaches a 45-Year High, Fed Minutes Reveal Labor Market Concerns, U.S. Rare Earth Mining Stocks Hit Pay Dirt
  • Silver prices hit their highest level since 1980 last week
  • The current federal funds rate target range is 4.00%-4.25%
  • The stock of rare earth materials miner MP Materials has rallied more than 75% this year

Top Three Market Headlines

Silver Reaches a 45-Year High: The price of silver touched $51 per ounce on commodity markets last week, its highest level since 1980, before closing the week at $49.39. Last week's gains added to the metal's remarkable performance in 2025, having risen 71% year-to-date through last Friday. One factor driving the rally is rising demand stemming from silver's usage in industrial production of various products, including semiconductors, which have seen a major uptick in AI-driven demand, and solar panels. In addition, silver is considered by some as a haven asset similar to gold, which has also surged more than 50% year-to-date.

Fed Minutes Reveal Labor Market Concerns: Minutes released last week from the latest meeting of Federal Reserve governors in September revealed officials' growing anxiety about softness in labor markets. Among the issues cited were a slowdown in job gains, a slight increase in the unemployment rate, and the recent Bureau of Labor Statistics revision showing 900,000+ fewer jobs having been created through March 2025 than previously reported. These concerns contributed to the decision by the central bank's rate-setting committee at the meeting to lower the target range for its policy interest rate, the federal funds rate, by a quarter percentage point to 4.00% to 4.25%.

U.S. Rare Earth Mining Stocks Hit Pay Dirt: The stock prices of several U.S. miners of rare earth materials jumped last week on news that China will curtail exports of such minerals. As China accounts for 90% of downstream rare earth minerals and products, restrictions on such could lead to a potential market and supply chain squeeze. The announcement also stoked expectations that American mining ventures will benefit from potential new investments from the federal government on national security concerns. A handful of the stocks have been surging since July when the U.S. government announced it was buying a stake in U.S.-based mining company MP Materials.

As of October 10, 2025 Week Quarter-To-Date Year-To-Date One-Year
MSCI All Country World -2.09% -1.24% 16.96% 16.27%
S&P 500 -2.41% -1.99% 12.54% 14.85%
Russell 2000 -3.28% -1.70% 8.52% 10.92%
MSCI EAFE -1.86% -0.30% 24.77% 17.44%
MSCI Emerging Markets -0.58% 1.48% 29.42% 20.46%
FTSE NAREIT Equity -3.49% -3.45% 0.90% -1.97%
Bloomberg Commodity -1.13% -0.41% 8.93% 8.08%
Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate 0.33% 0.58% 6.75% 4.99%

Fox Business 10/9/2025, Barrons 10/9/2025, Federal Reserve 10/8/2025, Bloomberg 10/9/2025. Data from Morningstar Direct. Returns for periods greater than one year are annualized. Investment advisory services are offered by Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors, LLC ("GFA"), an SEC registered investment advisor that provides retirement, investment advisory, discretionary and independent fiduciary services. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply any specific level of skill or training and does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the SEC. GFA is a limited liability company with Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc. as its single member. GFA may pay referral fees or other remuneration to employees of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. or its affiliates or to independent contractors; such payments do not change our fee. Neither Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., GFA, their affiliates nor representatives provide accounting, legal or tax advice. GFA does not express an investment opinion regarding any specific commodity, sector or individual security. Unless otherwise expressly noted, the contents of this communication do not constitute securities or investment advice, nor should this communication be construed as an opinion regarding the appropriateness of any investment. The information provided cannot take into account all the various factors that may affect your particular situation, therefore you should consult your GFA consultant before acting upon any information or recommendation contained herein to discuss the suitability of the information/recommendation for your specific situation.