While gold is mainly used as an investment, to preserve value and in the form of jewelry (less than 10% of annual demand comes from industry), silver has a kind of hybrid function. This means that most recently about 57% of the total silver demand came from industry, while the rest was mainly demanded by the investor side as well as by the jewelry industry.
For years, there was an oversupply in the silver sector, which - thanks to increased inflows into silver-backed silver ETPs - turned again into a full supply deficit of 60 million ounces from 2019. In 2020, including ETPs, a supply deficit of 251 million ounces was even recorded. All in all, global silver demand is expected to rise again in the coming years. In addition to expected ETP inflows and physical demand at a high level, a drastic increase in demand is expected in particular from the medical/pharmaceutical, automotive and photovoltaic sectors.
On the supply side, most primary silver producers have concentrated on reducing mining prices in recent years due to a persistent slump in silver prices. Particular savings were made in exploration, which led to the fact that virtually no major deposits were discovered in recent years. Price weaknesses for several base metals also meant that the development of mines that produce silver as a by-product was postponed for the time being. The Silver Institute therefore assumes a supply deficit of up to 126.7 million ounces of silver for 2021 including ETPs.
It is precisely its hybrid function that should drive silver to new price levels in the post-Corona period. On the one hand, there is a good chance of a strong expansion of demand due to an expected economic upswing (and especially from (future) high-tech boom sectors), and on the other hand, however, there is also a continuing high demand from the investment sector, as many investors want to protect their savings from increasing currency devaluation and will invest in silver.
This report provides a wealth of information on the silver sector and offers insightful interviews with exclusively selected experts from the industry. The presentation of a number of interesting companies that are suitable for speculation on rising silver prices completes the report.
