Is it worth buying silver?

Rising inflation has forced central banks around the world to tighten monetary policy. That doesn't bode well for asset classes like stocks and bonds. For example, the "S&P 500" is down 19% year-to-date, and the nominal yield of 10-year U.S. "treasurers" hovers around 3%.

Since the beginning of the year, gold has dropped in price by 5% due to rising interest rates. However, macroeconomic and geopolitical instability maintains gold quotes at a fairly high level.

Investors expected similar results from silver, which is considered a cheaper alternative to gold. However, on the international market, prices for gray metal have decreased by 17% since the beginning of the year. A serious lag in silver from gold reflects the impact of industrial demand on gray metal quotes. The high probability of a slowdown in economic growth has reduced industrial demand for copper and silver. Since January 2000, the absolute yield of silver was 268%, and gold - 521%. Interestingly, copper, one of the main industrial metals, had an indicator of 311%. Silver yields were closer to copper yields, highlighting the functioning of this precious metal as an industrial raw material. At the same time, the lag of silver from gold and copper makes it not very interesting for investors. However, the improvement of the economy in the future will lead to an unprecedented increase in demand for silver, since this precious metal is important for the sectors of the "green economy." Consequently, silver quotes will also rise.