Why Buy Silver Now

Rising Mint Sales Show Strong Silver Surge Continues in 2024

Silver ran laps around gold and stocks in May, and now that we have the complete monthly figures for May, we see that silver tailed off in the last week but still kept its commanding lead for the month of May (up nearly 15%) and year to date (up 27%):

Precious Metals: 2024 to May 31         May Alone      Stock indexes: 2024 to May 31:           May Alone

SILVER          +27.03%          +14.82%          S&P 500          +11.07%                      +4.80%

GOLD             +12.63%          +1.37%           NASDAQ        +11.48%                      +6.88%

Platinum          +4.29%           +10.25%          Dow Jones       +2.64%                       +2.30%

Palladium         -18.55%           -5.54%            Russell 2000    +2.12%                       +4.87%

Source: Yahoo Finance

Turning to the U.S. Mint, silver sales picked up this May and for the year-to-date.

American Silver Eagle Sales            2022    2023    2024         1-year gain            May Only Gain

January to May (millions of ounces)      9.801   8.242   12.488      +52.3%                               

May Mint sales (millions of ounces       1.35     1.59     1.75                                         +10%  

American Silver Eagle wholesale prices from the U.S. Mint’s authorized purchasers to dealers rose in the past few months from under $4 over spot price to nearly $5 over spot price. The price hike occurred despite increased production and sales by the U.S. Mint and while silver bullion coins from other major mints around the world remained below $2 over the spot price.

It is a difficult situation that I hope to address with U.S. Mint Director Ventris Gibson during an upcoming meeting in Washington D.C., later this year. Additionally, American Silver Eagle coin sales are up significantly in 2024 from January through May. So far, this year, the U.S. Mint has sold 12.488 million American Silver Eagles than during the same time period in 2023, which was 8.242 million and 2022, which was 9.801 million.

Just to remind you of silver’s gains in the last three months, it was trading at $22.67 at the end of February, after declining during the first two months of the year. Then it began a 33%+ surge:

On May 14, the Biden Administration announced tariffs on Chinese exports of solar energy panels would double from 25% to 50% and tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) would quadruple, from 25% to 100% – like paying double the asking price off the top.  For solar cells, silver helps conduct electricity when light strikes the photovoltaic cell. A typical solar panel contains up to 20 grams of silver (0.64 Troy oz). For EVs, nearly every electrical connection in a vehicle contains silver and over 55 million ounces of silver are used each year in motor vehicles. EVs are expected to account for 49% of silver use in automobiles by 2040 and the Biden lawmakers not only underwrite and encourage EVs but, in some cases, mandate more EVs.

So, silver’s gain was over 33% in the last three months after losing 5% in the first two months. Silver’s biggest May spurt came after President Biden’s massive May 14th tariff increases.

Silver industrial demand rose 9% in 2023 and is expected to rise in 2024, according to the Silver Institute.

Over the last three full years (2021-23), the Silver Institute estimates that there was a cumulative deficit of 474 million ounces, equivalent to 14,743 metric tons of silver. Adding this year’s estimate of a 215-million-ounce (6,700 ton) supply-demand deficit, that brings the cumulative four-year deficit to 21,443 tons of silver, which is mostly why silver has doubled in the last five years.