VIDEO - Lobo Tiggre: Reddit Silver Surge May be Brief, Focus on Fundamentals

The spotlight on silver that started last week continued on Monday (February 1), with the white metal reaching its highest point so far this year and receiving broad media coverage.

The attention on silver was initially driven by comments on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum — the same group that has spurred recent market activity surrounding GameStop (NYSE:GME). But by the weekend, some WallStreetBets members were decrying silver as a distraction.

The Investing News Network turned to Lobo Tiggre, founder and editor of IndependentSpeculator.com, to get his thoughts on the quickly developing situation.

“Clearly there is a very large portion of the mainstream, as it were, of WallStreetBets on Reddit that wants to stay focused on the GameStop story and does see the silver story as a distraction,” he said.

“Now, that doesn’t mean that it’s the evil hedge funds that are (pushing the silver narrative), or even evil silver bugs that are trying to raid and steal their thunder,” Tiggre continued. “Reddit is a forum for ideas, so I think everybody should take a step back, breathe deep — there’s no need for conspiracies here. It can just be people with different interests pushing in different directions.”

He emphasized that regardless of how this wave of interest in silver began, it’s here now and it’s impacting the market. In addition to silver’s price rise, physical silver demand has seen a massive uptick, as have inflows for silver-focused exchange-traded funds. Silver companies have also been impacted.

But how this situation will play out in the long run remains to be seen.

“I don’t know if we have critical mass for this to be a game changer and send silver to a new record high in nominal terms,” said Tiggre. “But it doesn’t hurt. This is my bottom line … the fundamentals were fantastic for gold and silver before this happened — none of that’s changed. If this whole Reddit thing turns into a brief flash in the pan … it doesn’t change the fundamentals.”

He did caution that the current spike in interest could be brief, and the silver price could potentially fall off. That type of correction might hurt those who jump in at the top, but could be a buying opportunity for those who are patient. Watch the interview above for more.

Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!

Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.