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Though the white metal spent Monday hovering at around $16.30 per ounce, it took a big leap Tuesday morning, shooting up as high as $17.15.
Silver saw some exciting price action last week following Switzerland’s referendum on gold, but that was nothing compared to what’s happened to the metal this week.
Though the white metal spent Monday hovering at around $16.30 per ounce, it took a big leap Tuesday morning, shooting up as high as $17.15. It seems to have taken its cues from gold, which rose above $1,200 per ounce on Monday, then continued on to top $1,230 Tuesday morning.
A number of factors appear to have driven the precious metals price surge. According to Reuters, the action began Monday when Dennis Lockhart, head of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, said he still believes US central banks should continue to keep interest rates close to zero for a “considerable time.” His statement pushed the dollar down 0.5 percent against other key currencies, making precious metals more appealing to investors.
Also helping precious metals was the poor performance of the S&P/TSX Venture Composite index (INDEXTSI:JX) and S&P/TSX Composite index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) on Monday. The former closed at its lowest price ever, while the latter recorded its worst fall since 2011, and though that’s bad for stocks, Bloomberg states that it spurred safe-haven demand for silver, and particularly gold.
It’s anyone’s guess whether this week’s gains from precious metals will stick, but James Cordier, founder of OptionSellers.com, offered some optimism. He told Bloomberg, “[s]timulus from every corner of the global economy is now entrenched, and that’s bullish for precious metals. This is a change of sentiment in a huge way, because investors stopped looking at U.S. interest rates possibly rising next year, to see the fact that every other major economy is easing at a breakneck pace to try and quell the slowdown.”
Silver closed Tuesday at $17.11.
Silver stocks gain
Similar to last week, when silver’s gains brought share price jumps for a number of heavyweights in the space, Tuesday’s silver price jump was good news for several miners. Here’s a look at five companies that had achieved big gains by the end of the day:
- Excellon Resources (TSX:EXN) — up 19.64 percent on the TSX at $0.67.
- First Majestic Silver (TSX:FR,NYSE:AG) — up 12.72 percent on the TSX at $5.23; up 13.37 percent on the NYSE at $4.58.
- SilverCrest Mines (TSX:SVL,NYSEMKT:SVLC) — up 7.64 percent on the TSX at $1.55; up 10.48 percent at $1.37 on the NYSEMKT.
- MAG Silver (TSX:MAG,NYSEMKT:MVG) — up 9.3 percent on the TSX at $8.58; up 9.94 percent on the NYSEMKT at $7.52.
- Coeur Mining (NYSE:CDE) — up 8.33 percent on the NYSE at $4.55.
Their price action is another reminder to investors that while the markets may look discouraging, nimble investors can still make gains.
Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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