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Both gold and silver have achieved significant price hikes at the beginning of 2021, with the latter breaking through the $30 mark (£21.56) at the beginning of February (with this eight-year high driven in part by the actions of Reddit traders and Internet communities).
Of course, the price of silver has since declined to $26.02 (£18.70) as of March 9th, but this remains considerably higher than the mark of $22.91 (£16.47) at the end of November 2020.
But will gold and silver remain viable investments through 2021, and which asset offers the best value to investors across the globe?
Appraising the Price of Gold in 2021
While both gold and silver have enjoyed relative highs at times in 2021, these assets have seen their values decline somewhat as the first quarter has progressed.
In the case of gold, this asset achieved a high of $1,951.34 per ounce on January 5th, threatening to breakout above $20,000 in the near-term.
However, this peak came as doubt continued to rage against the backdrop of the coronavirus and the rioting at Capitol Hill stateside, which encouraged investors to continue to back the world’s premier safe haven asset.
Since then, political stability has returned following the inauguration of Joe Biden as President of the United States, while a global vaccine rollout has also seen the easing of national lockdown restrictions and caused the IMF to revise its global growth forecast for 2021 up by 0.3% to 5.5% overall.
As a result, risk appetite has returned to the world’s investment markets, causing the price of gold to tumble to an annual low of $1,696.60 on March 4th. While it has since rebounded back above the $1,700 mark, demand has continued to fall across the globe.
A Look at Silver and Which Option is Best for You?
While silver’s price has also declined in recent times, it remains considerably higher than its low of 2020. Not only this, but the actions of Reddit traders arguably sent the price of silver disproportionately high in February.
So, silver still appears to be performing considerably better than gold in the current market, with the price firmly fixed above the £18 mark as economic growth returns.
Not only is this indicative of the more affordable nature of silver, but it also reflects the fact that this precious metal benefits from considerably higher levels of industrial usage. In fact, 56% of the total silver supply is used in the manufacturing of products such as batteries and medical devices, which means that the value of the metal is intrinsically linked to economic activity and performance.
With this in mind, silver may seem like a better option in the current market, especially as the global economy continues to grow and the demand for goods continues to rise incrementally over time.
Silver is definitely a superior investment asset from a long-term perspective in 2021, although gold may still have a little appeal while the vaccine rollout continues and fears of a third-wave of infections continue to impact on government policy decisions.
