After outperforming the stock market over the past few years, is silver still worth buying? There are plenty of reasons to consider silver exchange traded funds (ETFs).
According to Kevin Grewal of Minyanville, although gold continues to grab more headlines, silver may be the more appealing investment. For one, silver has many more industrial uses than gold- currently, 55% of silver is used for such purposes. For example, silver is used in plasma display panels, food storage containers, solar panels and antiseptic applications.
On a historical basis, silver is selling at depressed prices when compared to gold. The long-term ratio of gold to silver price is 16. Currently, gold is selling at a much higher ratio. In addition, silver is selling at nearly 70% below its all -time high. [Commodities In An Inflationary Environment.]
Finally, putting all that into perspective, silver is a diminishing resource. At current consumption rates, all of the silver in earth’s crust will be depleted in the next 25 years.
Bear in mind that because silver is so much more sensitive to industrial demand than gold is, the price tends to be more volatile.