%Gold might be at a record high, but %Silver continues to outperform the precious metal with its price up nearly 30% year to date.
The price of silver is currently at $31.14 U.S. an ounce, up 29% so far in 2024 and ahead of the 26% gain seen in gold’s price.
Despite its outperformance, silver has not been getting nearly as much attention as gold, whose price is currently at $2,604 U.S. an ounce and near an all-time high.
Analysts say silver is lurking in gold’s shadow largely because the price is still far from the record-high of nearly $50 U.S. an ounce set back 2011.
However, some analysts say they expect silver’s price to test new all-time highs over the next 12 months as demand for the metal steadily increases.
Silver’s record price was $49.82 U.S. reached on April 25, 2011.
Silver is benefitting from the fact that it is both a precious metal used to maker jewellery and an industrial metal that is used as a conductor of electricity.
Like gold, silver is also benefitting from a rise in demand from China, the world’s second-largest economy.
Within China, silver is needed to manufacture solar panels that convert sunlight into electricity and is key to the country’s energy transition.
Silver’s price is expected to gain more in coming months as the U.S. Federal Reserve lowers interest rates, which is expected to boost the economy and help avoid a recession in America.
Analysts note that conditions are favourable for silver and that the metal’s price still has a long runway ahead of it before it again reaches record highs.