Last updated: 3/21/2023
Will silver hit $100 an ounce? Will silver go up?
Acquiring silver is known to be a great way for people to diversify their savings during times of economic turmoil and rising inflation. So, with the challenges facing Americans today, it should come as no surprise if the demand for silver increases, and many financial experts think it’s increasingly likely that the price of the precious metal will go up and hit an all-time high.
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Silver is one of the safest choices you can get in a world that relies even more heavily on debt and money printing since they aren’t associated with debt. A bar of silver is debt-free, so its value actually goes up when central bankers print money, which is one of the reasons why the current trend is super-bullish for gold and silver. In fact, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs have often released bullish forecasts for precious metals because, they say, the Fed cannot print silver or gold.
In this article, we will be taking a look at the factors impacting the price of silver, what could cause it to rise, and when these triggers could happen and possibly result in silver hitting $100 an ounce.
The current silver price and silver spot price history
As of the time this article was last updated, the current silver spot price is $22.34 an ounce (-1.23%). You can also view our live silver price ticker at the top of every page on our website to get real-time price updates 24/7.
As an additional resource, you can use our interactive silver price chart and calculator below. Explore silver’s price history here and use the slider at the bottom to choose the time segment.
Silver Spot Price History Chart:
Comparing the current silver price to its modern price history is the first step toward analyzing the possible price development of the popular precious metal. If you want to look even further back, you can check out our article on the history of American silver dollars and their values today.
Today, the price of silver is around half its all-time high of almost $50, which it achieved in 1980. Coming off of the pandemic in 2020–2021, the price of silver per ounce has been steady. However, when looking back over the past five years, we can see that it has risen over 30%. So, what’s the highest price silver has ever been, exactly?
What is Silver’s all time high price?
Here are some of the factors that could make silver go up to nearly twice the highest price silver has ever been, and possibly to $100 an ounce.
What factors could make silver go up to $100 an ounce?
While the price of silver would need to rise by more than 400% to reach $100 an ounce, it isn’t out of the question that it could happen. Will silver go up? Here are the factors that could drive silver to new historic highs.
1) Uncertainty in the Stock Market
Although the cost of silver is usually uncorrelated with the stock market, precious metals prices historically have risen as equity values sank. If the stock market sees a correction, the price of silver could go up.
Stock indexes were at an all-time high back in December of 2021, but in early 2022 they took a dip, which may indicate that stocks are overvalued. This is also supported by the Buffett Indicator, which compares the value of the stock market to our GDP (gross domestic product).
If people start losing confidence in the stock market, they begin to ask questions just like you such as “Will silver ever hit $100 an ounce?” or “what other assets can I turn to?”; and history tells us that they may turn to silver as a defensive asset to diversify their savings.
2) The Silver to Gold Ratio Shows Silver is Currently Cheap
The current price of silver is at around half of its all-time high, which makes it an attractive.
We can also see how cheap silver is by comparing the ratio of the cost of silver to the cost of gold. This is called the gold-to-silver ratio, which savvy precious metals investors and traders look at constantly to see where the pendulum will swing next. At its very basic, the gold-to-silver ratio is the number of ounces of silver it takes to purchase one ounce of gold.
To determine the ratio, you can simply calculate it on your own:
- gold-to-silver ratio = price of gold / by price of silver
Here is an example, using today’s market price:
- ~$1,800 (gold) / ~$20 (silver) = ~90 (ratio)
In the past century, the gold-to-silver ratio has fluctuated wildly and averaged around 50. This means that to reach the average—which will happen—silver will need to be priced at $34.40, and any buyer going into silver today would see a massive return.
3) Rising Demand for Green Energy and Electronics
Global demand for silver is reaching all-time highs as the precious metal is used in many emerging industries such as renewable energy, solar power, and other important green initiatives used to fight climate change.
Silver is also used in the making of mobile phones, which is soaring worldwide as almost everyone depends on one in their daily life. Due to these factors, it is expected that the demand for silver will continue to rise steadily for much of the foreseeable future.
4) Rising Inflation in the US
One of the biggest contributors to the potential rise in the price of silver is inflation. During the Inflation Crisis in the 1970s, the silver spot price per ounce skyrocketed from $12.40 to almost $50 in only 10 years. This was an increase of over 400% in the spot price of the precious metal. Even back in the 1970s, many experts were asking if silver would keep rising and hit $100 an ounce one day — and this is becoming a more realistic scenario today.
If we are staring down another 1970s-level inflation crisis, it could take less than a decade for silver to reach $100 per ounce, if the right factors come into play.
5) Struggling Silver Mining Supply
Although the demand for silver is continuing to rise, the production of silver took a big hit during the pandemic. Many silver were forced to shut down, and most of them are still not back to full working capacity.
And even though new measures have recently been taken to get the many mines back up and running safely, much of the production is still struggling, causing a supply bottleneck. The rising demand coupled with insufficient supply is a tell-tale case for understanding if silver prices could go up.
6) Russian Invasion of Ukraine and Global Political Instability
Historically, in times of geopolitical tension, silver prices have increased. Right now, the war between Russia and Ukraine is shaking the global economy and its effects are already being felt here in the US.
Russia contributes significantly to the world’s precious metal supply — roughly 2.6% of the world’s silver supply, 15.1% of platinum, 9.2% of gold, and an astonishing 45.6% of the world’s palladium supply. As their supply has now been completely cut off from the US, it is likely the silver price will rise.
Additionally, Taiwan considers itself an independent nation, while China claims Taiwan is a part of its nation state. If this tension escalates between China and Taiwan, we could see an exponential increase in the cost of silver per ounce as political tension would rise rapidly across the globe.
7) Global Supply Chain Challenges
The year 2020 saw a significant change in pretty much everything because of COVID-19. Part of the impact of the pandemic has been the challenge of transporting goods all over the world. Since the global supply chain of silver is no longer able to get the precious metal delivered in the same manner as pre-pandemic, many businesses may need to pay higher prices for silver to meet their production expectations.
How long could it take for silver to hit $100 an ounce?
Will the price of silver hit $100 an ounce soon? The most likely way silver will go up is if a major market correction occurs while the economy is under the effects of soaring inflation in the next 10 years. Growth of this level has already occurred once in recent history, during the 1970s, where the price of silver skyrocketed over the course of one decade.
Here are some key events that, if they take place, could answer the question “Will silver hit $100 an ounce?”
2022 – The US inflation rate runs wild
In an extreme scenario, we could see inflation take the reigns and bring silver prices over the $100 mark. If inflation continues to rise and reaches double-digit values through 2022 and 2023, the price of $100 an ounce for silver could be possible.
Consider that in 2021, we saw inflation rates averaging around 5%, which was the highest rate since 2008. Not only will inflation likely raise the price of silver, but more investors could seek precious metals like silver, which could also drive its price up.
2024 – Mountains of US debt cause huge spikes in interest rates
Even if the Fed figures out how to control our current inflation crisis, the US national debt is still looming over us. In early February of 2022, our national debt crept over $30 trillion for the first time ever. When bondholders push the US to pay higher interest rates, those rate hikes could trickle down to the average American consumer, which could push investors to turn to silver as a defensive asset with high growth potential.
2032 – Investors embrace precious metals over the next 10 years due to an overheated stock market
As the stock market gets more and more overheated and overvalued, investors might be looking for different ways to protect their portfolios from a serious market crash. They’ll specifically look toward defensive assets that have been underperforming compared to other assets over the last 20 or 30 years. That’s where silver comes in. You can also check out our gold price predictions for the next 5 years.
How much has silver price changed in 2022?
Is the price of silver going up?
When are silver prices going up?
When will silver prices go up? Although the price of silver is below its all-time high, silver prices going up is not out of the question at all. As a matter of fact, this may be a good time to check into silver as the price is below $20 per troy ounce. This could mean that if silver reaches $40 an ounce (almost $10 lower than its all-time high), you could see up to and over a 100% return.
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What is the best way learn more about silver?
Do you want to know more about how you can acquire silver to diversify your savings? Contact one of our precious metals specialists today. They are standing by to assist you in acquiring silver for your Precious Metals IRA or direct purchase. Call us today at (888) 734-7453, and don’t forget to ask how you can get a copy of the 2022 Silver Rising Guide to help you determine if silver is the right asset for you.
