I've taken the rather brave position of saying Silver hitting parity with Gold at some point in the future is inevitable. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IiarVvZguY[/youtube] Food for thought...
doubt ag will ever be worth more than gold or parity. This is just my opinion though but i cannot see it happening ever.
This is probably the best outcome for us all, and that is that Silver is used in Industry and causes the price rise. Rather than GFC's etc... As with Industry being the main user it should not create the mass panic, but still forcing the prices higher.
Isn't that just looking at the supply side of the equation? Personally, I don't think solar is going to take off like people think, it's really not very cost-effective compared to other energy options, and silver is being used less and less in some of it's traditional applications. Silver at more than $1400? Would be nice, but can't see it.
I have a Chinese friend who is European representative of the biggest Chinese solar power station company making businesses often on government levels. If I remember correctly on current prices the return on capital is 10 years even in Europe.
Primary silver mining cost is currently just under $6 but if you calculate everything from the drilling development until the end of the mine the cost is $14/oz and going up not only with inflation and increasing energy cost but also with the harder to get and less profitable deposits.
I'm sure there's more, but at this stage it is mostly mined as a byproduct of base metals - lead, tin, zinc, copper...even a bit from gold As it becomes cheaper, alternatives to silver based photovoltaic cells may become more economic
LOL very dramatic video Even if the ratio dropped to 1:1... whats to say when it happens that gold won't be worth $200 I would like to see silver pull back to $25 (so i can buy even more) and then spike to $40... and maybe up to $50. This seems more realistic to my immediate future, But who knows what will happen if the FIAT collapses. If the FIAT collapses then common stuff like salt and flour will be more valuable than gold
It already has taken off and it is cost effective. What other energy options are more cost effective in the long run?
I understand that silver is a 'floating metal' (my crap term) in that the deeper the mine goes the less concentrated the ore. Clawhammer may correct me on this one though. Hence it is not just a matter of mining more.
Interesting concept. I remember that some mines routinely expect better grades as they go deeper. But as there are few Ag miners it may well have been Au miners. Happy new year.
Silver price has never exceeded gold in recorded human history, doubt its going to happen anytime soon ! You can make the same argument for any commodity like oil, copper, iron ore that one day it will "run out". The exponential world population growth is the main driver for all this. About 7 billion people today, doubling about every 20 years gives a population of 28 billion by 2050.
Never before has Silver been more rare than Gold, either. Over the long term, no matter how far we mine, this will only increase as well.
I thought solar panels tended to use silicon and other semiconductor based materials, not silver. Even so surfaces would be coated so thin that an ounce would cover several football fields. Once silver becomes too costly for industry it wil be replaced by some other cheaper alternative. A lot of precious metals will become more economic to recover / recyle if the price gets too high. Notice we don't use silver anymore in photography. Had the digital camera not been invented then we would be predicting a run on silver due to photography and graphic arts. Not convinced silver will ever attain $100 per ounce or come close to parity with gold. Maybe gold is overpriced and will fall making the Au/Ag ratio drop a bit rather than arguing silver has to rise based on this ratio ?
I thought solar panels tended to use silicon and other semiconductor based materials, not silver. Why solar panel such a big deal? Solar panel NOT using silver should not be a basis of silver argument. There aren't that many solar panels compare to other electronics which utilize silver. From your keyboard, mouse, monitor, computer, mobile phone, dvd player, tvs, basically everything that uses circuit board uses silver. Do you know your DVDs and CDS uses a thin coat of silver film? How many DVDs and CDs did you throw away each year? Once silver becomes too costly for industry it will be replaced by some other cheaper alternative. Like what? Silver is the best semiconductor, the best metal to conduct electricity and heat. What are the alternatives? Gold, Platinum, Palladium? They will ended up cost more. Silver is an element, you can't manufacture element. A lot of precious metals will become more economic to recover / recycle if the price gets too high. Really? Do you envision people recycling DVD, CD discs and every electronic systems? Just look at plastics and papers, only a FRACTION of them being recycled. Most people don't bother. How are you going to force people to recycle every electronics and circuit boards? Notice we don't use silver anymore in photography. Notice how rapid technology increasing? Modern life find more and more uses of silver every day. We use silver in every aspect of our lives, from entertainment system, medical, telecommunication, military, household appliances, you name it. Notice how many mobile phones being produced every year and how often people CHANGE their mobile phones? Silver no longer used in photography, but Digital camera uses silver, the computer and printer that produces the photo uses silver. Had the digital camera not been invented then we would be predicting a run on silver due to photography and graphic arts. I Don't understand this point. Maybe gold is overpriced and will fall making the Au/Ag ratio drop a bit rather than arguing silver has to rise based on this ratio? At the current price, Gold is still underpriced if you inflation adjust. If gold is underprice, silver is even less than underprice.
