Social media discussions about precious metals have overtaken cryptocurrency chatter during most of January as retail investors chase price rallies in gold and silver while largely ignoring Bitcoin (BTC).
What Happened: Retail Shifts Focus to Metals
According to data from analytics platform Santiment, the pattern emerged in weekly cycles throughout the month.
Gold dominated social traffic between Jan. 8 and Jan. 18 after hitting new highs.
Bitcoin interest briefly returned during the third week as traders attempted to buy the dip amid falling prices. Crypto topics led discussions from Jan. 19 to Jan. 22.
Silver then recaptured attention after reaching record levels, having also topped social mentions during the first week of January.
"Cryptocurrency traders are well known for jumping between different sectors within digital assets based on the latest & greatest hype cycles, eg, memecoins vs AI vs blue chips, etc," Santiment analysts said. "But now, retail is proving to be open to jumping sectors entirely, with social data showing how gold, silver, and even equities are getting more and more interest based on wherever the latest pumps appear."
Also Read: Silver Jumps 12.5% In The Biggest Rally Since 2008
Why It Matters: FOMO Signals Market Tops
The retail attention surge carries a warning for traders. Santiment analysts noted that fear of missing out typically precedes price reversals.
Tuesday provided a case study: silver spiked above $117.70 before crashing below $102.70 within two hours as retail hype peaked. The metal traded around $113 by Wednesday.
Google Trends data showed crypto searches hit 100 on Jan. 21, then fluctuated between 61 and 93 through the week, scoring 82 by Wednesday.
Bitcoin searches peaked Monday at 100 and stood at 86 midweek. Silver recorded its highest interest on Jan. 22 at 100 but dropped to 68 by Wednesday.
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