Silver plunges in early trade, down as much as 16%

March silver futures fell 9.05% to $76.73 an ounce

Silver prices tumbled in early trading on Thursday, erasing gains from the previous two sessions before trimming some losses, as volatility continued to roil precious metals markets.

March silver futures fell 9.05%, or $7.666, to $76.73 an ounce by 0748 a.m. Mecca time, after sliding earlier to a session low of $73.415.

Spot silver dropped 12.5% to $77.04 an ounce, after plunging more than 16% within minutes to $73.567, compared with the previous close of $88.175.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, rose 0.15% to 97.761.