Silver and gold value marches towards record

The price of silver has jumped to the highest level since 2013 whilst gold nears record amid COVID-19.

Investors are currently flocking to a number of precious metals as demand continues to surge as coronavirus cases continue to increase in many nations across the world, which has forced real interest rates in the US to plummet and the economy to shrink.

Holdings in exchange-traded funds backed by silver and gold have hit an all-time high thanks to the increases. 

Silver is used widely in manufactured products including solar panels and various electronics and has got a major boost from bets on a return of full industrial demand and concerns surrounding the supply of the metal.

Vivek Dhar, an analysts about Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said: “Like gold, silver has benefited this year from safe haven demand and falling long term US real yields”.

Dhar then went on to say: “Low yields ultimately boost the appeal of non‑interest bearing assets like precious metals. A sustained rally in silver can continue, particularly when demand hopes and supply concerns are added to the mix.”

The price of spot silver increased by as much as 6%, reaching a value of $22.5821 an ounce. This is the highest figure the metal has seen since 2013. Futures on the Comex climbed by 6.5%.

Gold for immediate delivery went up by 0.3% to the value of $1847.52 by the ounce. This is the highest price the precious metal has been in almost nine years, and the price continues to close the gap between the all-time high which stands at $1,921.17 which was set in September 2011.

In a note, Chief Precious Metals Analyst at HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., James Steel, said: “Silver is surging, and we think it is likely to remain strong. Some investors who may not have participated fully in the gold rally could find silver attractive. We believe this is happening and may sustain silver at higher prices still.”