Silver prices fell to below $48.5 per ounce on Tuesday, maintaining the 7% selloff from the previous session as markets considered whether the metal's recent surge propelled it to the overbought territory. Silver prices in major exchanges had rallied nearly 40% since the end of September to reach a record-high of $54.5 per ounce on October 17th. Precious metals benchmarks surged as a US government shutdown, increasing geopolitical tension worldwide, and unsustainable fiscal deficits for major economies drove investors and governments to pile on hard currency and bullion as a preferred store of value. The rally was magnified for silver amid bullish long term bets on its industrial uses for electric vehicles, datacenters, and photovoltaic farms in addition to a supply squeeze in vaults in London and Shanghai.