Why Silver should have your attention !
Physical silver bar investment grew by a massive 67 percent in 2011 to 95.7 Moz, while global coins & medals fabrication rose by almost 19 percent to an all-time high of 118.2 Moz. Western Europe and the United States, which bested 2010’s record performance in terms of American Silver Eagle Bullion Coin sales, led this category to its record high. Elsewhere, strong demand in China accounted for a near 60 percent rise in its bullion coin output in 2011.
Global silver ETFs holdings in general proved to be quite resilient in 2011, with a relatively modest drop of 4 percent to 576.1 Moz at end-2011, in spite of marked volatility in investor trading elsewhere. In particular, even though 2011 saw a notable growth of 53 percent in Comex silver futures turnover (in terms of the annual average), net long positions on Comex ended in 2011 down 73 percent.
In 2012 robust global silver investor demand was the dominant driver of silver prices, accounting for almost a quarter of total silver demand. Averaging $31.15 per ounce, 2012 was the second highest price level on record, behind the average reached in 2011. While 2012 was a volatile year for most precious metals, globally, silver investment rose to a total of 252.7 million troy ounces (Moz). That figure represents approximately $8 billion on a net basis, substantially above the annual average of $1.2 billion over the 2001-2010 timeframe.
Investors remained significant net buyers of silver in 2012, as evidenced by the 21 percent increase in implied net silver investment (which includes physical bar investment, exchange traded funds and fund activity on Comex) to set an all-time high of 160.0 Moz. By comparison, in 2004, the level of implied net silver investment was 5.4 Moz.
Global silver ETF demand was robust, up by 55.1 Moz in 2012 hitting a historic high of 631.4 Moz. Total ETF holdings rose to a record $18.9 billion at year-end, up 16 percent from the figure recorded at year-end 2011.
Buoyant investor interest was also seen in demand for coins & medals at 92.7 Moz in 2012, the third highest level ever recorded. Coin minting in China posted a strong increase realizing a 47 percent gain over 2011.
In 2013, total identifiable investment demand, which includes physical bar investment, coins and exchange traded funds (ETF) inventories, rose by 27 percent to a three-year high at 247.2 Moz. The growth was driven principally by a strong rise in retail purchases of silver bars and coins. Demand for physical bullion bars more than doubled last year to reach a high of 127.2 Moz, while purchases of silver coins and medals rose 38 percent to a record 118.5 Moz. ETF holdings showed only modest growth in 2013. The average price of silver was 23.79 in last year.