Most of the business news these days is gloomy. Consider the following: cryptocurrencies, not too long ago a darling of Wall Street, have shed well in excess of a trillion dollars of their value; businesses are going bankrupt at an alarming pace, layoffs are skyrocketing, and family budgets are so tight that many can no longer afford to purchase fast food. Silver is one of the few bright spots. Its price has doubled since the beginning of the year.
Countless investors have been dazzled by the huge one-day gains in the price of gold this year. That’s why they’ll be surprised to learn that the percentage increase in silver has been even higher.
As of early December 2025, gold gained a very impressive 59% in the calendar year. Silver did even better – it rose by approximately 94%. By the way, the current price of an ounce of silver is just under $59 an ounce, slightly below the record high of $59.65 which it made on December 3. Silver is one of the best-performing assets this year – if not the best – far outpacing gold, stocks, real estate, and Bitcoin. Everyone who purchased silver in December 2008 made a very wise decision, because the price has quintupled since then.
Why is the price of silver on a tear? There are obvious answers and others not as obvious. One of the obvious ones is that silver has unmatched conductivity. That makes it perfectly suited for numerous high-tech products such as EVs, solar panels, 5G networks, and AI computing, according to AI Overview. Those products happen to be in great demand now and require a lot of silver.
Another reason, not quite as obvious, is the possible development of new technologies such as silver-based batteries, which could significantly increase demand for the metal going forward.
Poor Man’s Gold
Silver is sometimes referred to as the “poor man’s gold.” Like gold, it has a beautiful shine and a history of being used as money, but it’s far more abundant and much more affordable. A lot of investors who would like to own gold but are priced out of that market reach for a substitute – and that’s silver.
Also like gold, silver is considered a “safe haven” – it retains or even increases in value during times of economic downturn and political uncertainty. This is an important consideration because inflation continues to chip away at the buying power of the dollar, and because geopolitical tensions around the world are rising. Moreover, the U.S. dollar is weak, which makes silver more affordable when purchasing it with stronger currencies.
Each of the points listed above helps explain why silver has been rallying so strongly, but less obvious factors also need to be considered.
Secret Stuff
Market commentator Michael Cowan describes the silver market this way: “The silver rally has been driven by limited supply and increasing investor demand,” he says. “This year, the cost to lease silver, the preferred way to acquire the metal for industrial uses, rose to its highest level since 2002. According to a recent Deutsche Bank report, this indicates an extraordinary shortage of the metal. The firm’s analysts predict that the supply of silver available for industrial use is currently its tightest on record.”
The report from Deutsche Bank added that “it expects demand from investors to grow in 2026, further diminishing industrial supply.” Moreover, the bank “expects ETFs to hold approximately 1.1 billion troy ounces of silver by the end of 2026, surpassing the record high set in 2021.”
In other words, “there is record demand from both retail and institutional investors, and all the exchanges that hold the physical supply of silver are running out of it.”
The current rally in the price of silver has certainly been most welcome to silver investors, because the last time it made a new high was back in 1980. (In 2011 the price almost but didn’t quite tie the record.) “Can you tell me what other asset class only recently surpassed the high it made in 1980?” Cowan asks. “There is no other such asset class. And this suggests that the price of silver should be much higher than it is today.”
Silver Shortage Ahead?
How many products use silver? The number is too great to estimate, yet it keeps increasing. According to AI Overview, “Silver is found in an extremely vast and ever-growing number of items, particularly due to its use in electronics and the green energy sector. It’s used in almost every computer, mobile phone, automobile, as well as solar panels, batteries, and medical applications,” among many other uses.
Price is determined by supply and demand. That’s very bullish for silver, because demand to own the physical metal is increasing while supplies are getting tighter.
Points to Ponder
Other important points about silver should be noted:
According to an article on Silverseek.com, “Demand has outstripped supply for several years.”
Curiously, as silver was setting new all-time highs, computers at the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) crashed and were down for 10 hours – even backup systems didn’t work. One rumor claimed that a massive order from Asia couldn’t be filled because of a shortage of supply.
Silver inventories in China have hit a decade low because China reportedly has been bailing out shortages in London and shipping their silver overseas.
Numerous countries are “repatriating” their gold, bringing it back home. Some interpret this as a sign of trust breaking down between nations, and that gold will likely play a significant role in a new monetary system that will emerge.
With so many bullish factors, how has the price of silver remained low for decades? Massive market manipulation in the opinion of Cowan (and others). There’s a basis to that claim. A former trader at one of the world’s largest banks pleaded guilty to manipulating U.S. metals markets for years and claimed that he learned this skill from senior traders and that his supervisors at the firm knew of his actions.
As if this were not enough, a report in the November 15 Investopedia said that Buffett preferred silver to gold because it met nearly all of his investment criteria, while gold lacks those practical applications.
Rumors Galore
Despite all of its virtues, purchasing silver still has risk, as does every investment. However, having smashed through its multi-decade high and with important fundamentals supporting the bullish case, silver deserves investors’ consideration. Interested investors should consult with a financial expert before making any investment decisions.
Sources: AI Overview; Bloomberg.com; itmtrading.com; silverseek.com; theeconomiccollapseblog.com; YouTube: Why Silver Is the Most Underrated Asset in Human History – Michael Cowan.
Gerald Harris is a financial and feature writer. Gerald can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.