The credit card offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies from which MoneyCrashers. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they appear on category pages. Advertiser partners include American Express, U. Bank, and Barclaycard, among others. What was once only watched by central banks, insurance companies, and gold miners suddenly has become as mainstream as IBM and Microsoft.

In fact, I would say that gold is even bigger. The average small retail investor can easily invest in gold through exchange traded funds, or ETFs. But what about other precious metals?

Silver has had an impressive run up in price as well, and may even have more upside than gold over the coming months and years. Silver had an incredible run, just like gold, from to Silver has many traditional industrial uses.

Historically, silver was a key component in film used in most cameras. The rise of digital camerashowever, has practically made film obsolete, but the development of cell phones and other technology has helped fill the void.

Silver is used in virtually every electrical appliance in the world due to its low resistivity. Photovoltaics, the method by which solar radiation is converted to electrical power, requires silver for both semiconductors and solar panels.

Other new silver applications include use in wood preservatives, water purification, and food hygiene. Gold, on the other hand, has limited industrial uses. Jewelry, particularly in developing countries like India, accounts for over two-thirds of annual gold demand. But one has to wonder: Even luxury items have a point at which people stop purchasing them.

Products like consumer electronics and solar technology, however, seem to still have tremendous upside. This is because they use silver which is still quite reasonably priced, relatively speaking.

Therefore, it seems unlikely that cost will be a limiting factor when it comes to the industrial uses for silver. The same, however, can not be said for gold.

As stated previously, gold is viewed as a store of value, and rightly so. History tells us that having too many investments denominated in one currency is a recipe for disaster.

As gold has risen in value over the last decade, the value of the U. This is due to two main factors:. While gold is still the preferred vehicle as a hedge against fear, silver has a growing appeal as a safe haven. As investing in silver becomes easier, more people may try to take advantage of that play to protect their portfolio. Several years ago, a Tennessee bullion dealer named Franklin Sanders set out to determine the historical average price of gold related to silver.

In his research, going back tohe found the price work from home jobs bham al gold was steadily 16 times that of silver over years. Interestingly, after the creation of the Federal Reserve inthe ratio started to fluctuate more. In the last years, the ratio of gold to silver has been as high as This fluctuation has caused the historical average of the ratio to rise to Many traders believe that financial ratios, especially those that are based on widely traded and historically significant products like gold and silver, return to these historical patterns.

Silver bars of troy ounces weigh approximately 6. Their flat shape makes them suitable for buying gold vs stocks in a home safe or safe deposit box. While some people still purchase bars, coins are far more common. The two most popular silver coins are the one-ounce, These collectible coins include dimes, quarters, halves, and one-dollar pieces. There are ETFs for crude oil, natural gas, gold, silver, and a host of other products.

If you have a brokerage account in which you trade stocks, you can trade an ETF for silver, such as the iShares Silver Trust NYSE: SLVor the ETFS Silver Trust NYSE: Buying and selling these products allows you to participate in the price movement of silver without actually getting a piece of metal, which is much more convenient for many investors.

Precious Metal Investments vs. the Stock Market

Purchasing shares in companies that mine for silver is another way to gain exposure to the silver market. Companies rarely mine silver alone, as silver is often found within can you get cashback with a credit card at the grocery store alongside ore containing other metals such as tin, lead, zinc, or copper.

Therefore, shares of stock in mining companies give you exposure to many base metals. Shares in companies like Silver Wheaton NYSE: SLWfor example, give you an exposure to metals, particularly silver, without actually tracking the price of the metal. These companies generally make more money as the price of base metals rise, so their stock price tends to rise and fall in line with the price movement of the underlying metal market. Never trade over your head, and always trade for the long-term.

The extreme volatility of worldwide markets, the European debt crisis, and the Great Recession jp morgan forex volatility index all contributed to a higher level of buying gold vs stocks in the investment world than in years past.

Owning gold 24 hr binary option auto trade service trades silver can be a valuable hedge against economic instability and can help to balance your portfolio, especially in terms of dollar risk. Evan Pierce has spent nearly 20 years as a commodity trader and market analyst. He is registered with the National Futures Association as a Commodity Trading Advisor CTA and has written and edited his own newsletter, The Position Sheet.

He grew up in New Providence, New Jersey and now lives in Norwich, Vermont with his wife, three children, and their two Golden Retrievers. Sign up below to get the free Money Crashers email newsletter! The content on MoneyCrashers. Should you need such advice, consult a licensed financial or tax advisor. References to products, offers, and rates from third party sites often change.

While we do our best to keep these updated, numbers stated on this site may differ from actual numbers.

We may have financial relationships with some of the companies mentioned on this website. We strive to write accurate and genuine reviews and articles, and all views and opinions expressed are solely those of the authors. About Press Contact Write For Us. Money Crashers Topics Banking Bank Account Promotions Free Checking Accounts Credit Cards Cash Back Credit Cards Low-APR Credit Cards Travel Rewards Credit Cards Hotel Credit Cards Gas Credit Cards Student Credit Cards Business Credit Cards Secured Credit Cards More About About Us Press Contact Write For Us Top Personal Finance Blogs Time Banking Explained — How to Trade Services With a Time-Based Currency.

Spend More for High Quality or Buy Cheap to Save Money? By Evan Pierce Posted in: Share 23 Tweet Pin 4 Comments 2. The Market for Silver and Gold Silver had an incredible run, just like gold, from to Industrial, Commercial, and Consumer Demand Silver has many traditional industrial uses.

Central Banks, Fear, and Financial Stress As stated previously, gold is viewed as a store of value, and rightly so. This is due to two main factors: Countries, such as China, that hold trillions of dollars in U.

So what do they do? They buy gold, essentially swapping some of their dollar risk for gold risk.

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Mining Companies Purchasing shares in companies that mine for silver is another way to gain exposure to the silver market. Investing in Gold - History, Determining If It's a Good Investment. Is Silver a Good Investment? How To Get The Most For Your Unwanted Gold. Watch Out For A Bubble In This Market.

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