The value of silver has soared more than 78% this year, says Forbes. And gold isn’t far behind. While the market’s dust might have started to settle, analysts think gold and silver prices will soon creep back up.
Catch up on market shifts and how they ripple into the luxury watch world.
What happened to gold and silver prices?
2025 has been a busy year for precious metals.
The prices of gold, silver, platinum and palladium rose in October. Both gold and silver have reached record highs recently, with gold surging nearly 56% and silver prices increasing by almost 78%.
The London market, which has become the epicentre of silver trading, has had a drop in inventory in recent years, with liquidity disappearing this year. Anant Jatia, Greenland Investment Management’s chief investment officer, said that what we’re seeing in silver is “entirely unprecedented”.
We’re now seeing the aftermath of the rally. Gold and silver prices are falling again following huge gains, but as a “safe haven investment”, experts believe gold will continue to be a practical investment option.
The beauty of gold
While the gold and silver rally has generally run out of steam (apart from a jump at the start of November), gold remains a robust investment.
It’s expected to stay strong even as the world navigates a government shutdown, declining job market and steady inflation. Despite outpacing gold this year, some economists still see silver as a riskier investment. It’s been known to swing more sharply than gold during uncertain times, leading some to dub it “gold on steroids”.
Gold prices are still sitting at a high and are expected to rise again.
Rolex & other brand responses to gold prices
It’s the most used metal in luxury watches, so it should come as no surprise that the industry keeps a close eye on the price of gold. Watchmakers have to adapt as the market shifts – and it’s not always good news for consumers.
FT reported that luxury watchmakers paid around $2300 an ounce two or so years ago, which shot up to $3300 an ounce in mid-2025.
The most common responses to soaring gold prices are to use alternative metals or raise watch prices.
You might have noticed that Rolex increased the prices of its gold watches by 8% at the start of 2025. In May, US retail prices increased by around 3% – partly due to the rising price of precious metals and partly due to the new tariff. And in June, certain Rolex gold models rose by around 4%. Models hit with the highest increases were the brand’s most sought-after gold models, like the yellow gold GMT-Master II and Day-Date 40mm.
Steel models have experienced much more modest price hikes.
Other brands, including Cartier, have withdrawn some of their more expensive gold models from their offerings. According to marketing agency Digital Luxury Group, Cartier pulled 63.8% of inventory on its website.
Omega is said to have increased the cost of its gold models by 2-3% and Patek Philippe has implemented price hikes of around 7% for some of its gold watches.
What’s next?
Going off what we’ve learned through history, gold will continue to perform well despite an unstable climate. Similarly, gold luxury watches will always be in demand as the classic, dressier option.
As prices rise, many Swiss watch enthusiasts will meet the brands where they are.
Others may show a shift in demand towards stainless steel models.
For now, we’re expecting the market to get a little busier, as people look for more affordable models or try to take advantage of rising gold prices by selling their watches.
Buy or sell a watch with Trilogy
Browse our collection of luxury watches or ask about our sourcing service. We have a wide industry network, which means we can find almost any watch you like, at the best prices.
Otherwise, if you’d like to take advantage of the position of the market, this could be a good time to sell your gold watch.
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