Silver Hits $20.37 an Ounce

Silver prices rose $0.96, to $20.37 an ounce, on July 22. The increase caused the gold/silver ratio — the amount of silver ounces needed to purchase an ounce of gold — to fall after hitting a high of 66.6 on July 19, Reuters reported.

Friday’s ratio was the highest since August 2010, according to Bloomberg.

Silver futures for September delivery also increased $0.46, to $19.915 an ounce, today on the COMEX in New York.

Like gold, silver was helped today by speculation that the US Federal Reserve will continue its stimulus program. However, a Reuters poll shows that many analysts expect silver prices to stay low in 2014 on anticipation that the central bank will begin to slow its stimulus.