It should come as no surprise to anyone who trades or who has traded silver that it is much more volatile than gold. In fact, since yesterday's highs in the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) and the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE: GLD), the SLV has had a 3% correction whereas the GLD has had a sparse 1.2% pullback.

Something we are going to have to get accustomed to in order to get the benefit of the approaching "silver catch-up" rally. My near- and intermediate-term work continues to warn me to expect a powerful upmove in silver prices. The trick for me will be to "be there" when it arrives, and to survive the whipsaws. Spot silver prices are set up technically for upside acceleration towards a test of its long-term resistance line, now at $20.10, which if hurdled should unleash a powerful catch-up advance that propels silver towards its 1980 area near $50.00.

Mike Paulenoff is a 26-year veteran of the financial markets and author of MPTrader.com.