The plunge in gold prices yesterday, rocked the markets with the precious metal shedding over $30 per ounce in the futures market as the big operators finally triggered the move in a classic pump and dump operation.

Where gold goes, silver follows, and it was no surprise to see the industrial metal following the precious metal lower, although the move was less savage, closing on the September futures at $20.91 per ounce with a wide spread down candle on the daily chart.

Volume on the day was above average, but certainly not the extreme volumes seen for gold as the metal moved back into the congestion phase of the last few weeks, with the clearly defined support region now in place at the $20.70 per ounce level.

To the upside, the secondary resistance region is again well defined in the $21.55 per ounce region, which helped to bring the bullish move higher to a shuddering halt.

Should the $20.70 per ounce level be breached as expected, then silver looks set to test the more developed support level at $20.40 per ounce, and once through this level, $19.40 per ounce is then increasingly likely to be tested in the medium term.

Equity only readers gain exposure to the gold through the SPDR Gold Shares Trust (GLD, quote) ETF that seeks to replicate the performance, net of expenses, of the price of gold bullion. The GLD trust holds gold, and is expected to issue baskets in exchange for deposits of gold, and to distribute gold in connection with redemption of baskets.  Readers can also access the gold market through the iShares COMEX Gold Trust (IAU, quote) ETF seeks to replicate, net of expenses, the day-to-day movement of the price of gold bullion.

Exposure to silver can be obtained through the iShares Silver Trust (SLV, quote) ETF that seeks to replicate the performance, net of expenses, of the price of silver bullion. The SLV trust holds sliver, and is expected to issue baskets in exchange for deposits of silver, and to distribute silver in connection with redemption of baskets.  Readers can also access the gold market through the ETFS Physical Silver Shares (SIVR, quote) ETF seeks to replicate the price of silver bullion. The shares are backed by physical allocated silver bullion held by the custodian. All physical silver held conforms to the London Bullion Market Association's rules for good delivery

Anna Coulling is a trader with over 16 years’ experience and founder of AnnaCoulling.com