New York

HEDGE funds expanded their bullish bets on silver to an all-time high even as this year's hottest metals rally began to fade.

Money managers added to their net-long positions in silver for the fourth time in five weeks, chasing the kind of returns that in the first three months of the year sent the precious metal to its best quarterly gain since 2012. The price surge is showing signs of fatigue, with futures posting two consecutive weekly declines and an almost 4 per cent drop for May.