Last year silver prices per ounce skyrocketed 70% within just a few months. Many investors today believe silver will continue to rise due to debt issues and a struggling economy. Some believe silver could even hit $100 before 2014. If you are thinking about investing in silver, this recent pullback may be the best opportunity you will have for a while. After all, silver has performed much better than the stock market indexes over these past few years and any return is better than going into the negative. So the question is, what is causing the silver prices per ounce to rise?
A big reason is the industrial demand. Silver is used in many different products and usually can't be recycled. In 1900 there was appropriately 11.5 billion ounces of refined silver in the world. In 1990, that number had dropped to approx. 2.2 billion ounces. Currently, there is less than 250 billion ounces of refined silver in the world. The cause behind this is that silver mined today has already been prepaid for by companies to use in electronics, RFID's, etc. Also, many of the big producers of precious metals like China have discontinued the exporting of silver because their stockpiles are running low.
As the supply decreases, investment demand has been increasing rapidly. This has caused the huge increase in silver prices per ounce. Back in 2007, silver prices hovered around $14 per ounce. As we start the summer of 2011, it is about $35 per ounce. Some big name analysts have predicted silver to hit $50 before the end of the year. After that, there is no telling how high it will go. The price of silver has been on the rise for the past 30+ years, with only three major dips. You have better odds making money with silver than you do investing in stocks. As we saw in 2008 big companies can go bankrupt real fast and then their stocks are worth pennies.
Sometimes it can be hard to pick an investment that will guarantee to make you money. Silver is one of those options, if you hold onto it long enough you will make a profit. Silver will always be needed for electronics and other household goods and as the supply continues to decrease the prices can only go up. It is very easy to invest in silver with many online retailers and other local options. Get in today if before silver prices per ounce go even higher. If the economy continues to struggle and the dollar continues to weaken you will be glad you did.
