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Silver Bullion Premiums Returning to Pre-Pandemic Levels

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The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on global supply chains, creating a myriad of problems and challenges for mining and minerals companies, refineries and mints.

Many mines and refineries around the world were shut down or operated at reduced capacities due to lockdowns, quarantine measures, and worker illness. This led to reduced output and shortages of silver, gold and platinum, not only for investors, but especially in industries where precious metals are consumed.

The supply chain disruptions and lockdowns led to wholesale premiums on precious metals to increase quickly as demand from investors was driven by uncertainty and supply concerns.

The premiums on US Mint Silver Eagles were impacted more than others. Most of the high premiums were caused by a combination of things that included a variety of repeated shutdowns, issues with blank planchets from suppliers and other problems related to the production of coins. At their peak, the dealer premiums on Silver Eagles were in excess of 50% more than the silver spot price.

In today’s market, bullion buyers are able to find deals on 10 oz silver bars from various online dealers with premiums below $2.00 per ounce over the prevailing silver spot price. For investors looking for larger silver bars, such as silver kilos and 100 oz bars, dealer premiums can be the range as low as $1.25 to $1.50 per troy ounce above spot silver.

Silver premiums have not been this low in several years making this a great opportunity to back up the truck and load it up.

Although the Federal Reserve has paused interest rate hikes for the time being, many analysts are speculating that the results of the policy hikes aren’t likely to be felt for twenty-four months or longer. The Fed began the string of rate hikes in March 2022 as a following two years of consistently high inflation impacting prices.

If analysts predictions are correct, the CPI, which includes consumer prices of essential everyday goods, including housing, gasoline and food, isn’t likely to show meaningful decreases until the first quarter of 2024 or beyond.

JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon continues to repeat his dire prediction of an extended period of stagflation.

Stagflation is an economic term used to describe a situation in which an economy experiences stagnant growth, high unemployment, and high inflation simultaneously. This combination is particularly troubling for policymakers because the usual tools to combat inflation, like raising interest rates or reducing government spending, can exacerbate unemployment and further hinder economic growth. While measures to boost the economy, like lowering interest rates or increasing government spending, can worsen inflation.

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Why Many Investors Prefer Silver Over Gold

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Investing in precious metals is a big commitment. The notion of taking a portion of your cash savings buying a physical asset goes against the mainstream narrative.

The Federal Reserve has announced that the FedNow service is NOT a CBDC. Most “conspiracy theorists” are suggesting that the Fed may not be telling the truth. Luckily, a few states like Florida and Texas have efforts to reject any fed issued digital token.

More people want precious metals as a store of value in lieu of cash and deciding which is the best metal to buy can be a laborious choice. Ideally, having a balanced portfolio that is diverse with a portion in both gold and silver, alongside traditional investments, can provide extra assurance to cover many unexpected financial scenarios.

Silver is Cheaper Per Ounce

The most obvious reason many investors prefer to buy silver is the enormous price gap per ounce. The average per ounce premium is often higher on silver as a percentage of the price.

However, just like with the stock markets, the commodities markets also have bull and bear periods where the returns on silver can shine or tarnish.

For example, at the start of the pandemic in 2020, the price per ounce of silver hit a low of $11.77 per ounce. In three years, silver is already trading up more than 100%.

Silver coins and bars

Gold prices have been trading at record highs in recent weeks. Rumors have been circulating for weeks about an upcoming announcement from the BRICS summit in South Africa related to a new gold-backed reserve currency.

Easier to Liquidate

This has some analysts continuing to suggest that gold prices will continue to climb higher as central banks in many emerging economies continue adding gold to their reserves.

A portfolio containing many smaller silver coins, such as Britannias or 1 ounce silver bars is naturally more convenient to sell than larger bars or a full ounce of gold.

Silver stacking is far more popular than most people realize. Many find it to be a convenient and effective way to set aside a little bit of cash each week or month.

As a physical asset, it’s a little more difficult to spend than cash and easy to keep stashed at home is available in a variety of formats that span from naturally fractional junk silver to larger kilogram and 100 ounce silver bars.

There are many options, both locally and online that make selling silver easy when the time comes. Whether it’s for an unexpected emergency repair or to raise some cash for a new venture.

While selling a portion of silver coins is a straightforward process, it’s not as easy or practical to cut a gold bar in half.

Growing Industrial Consumption

Silver is consumed by various industries in considerably greater quantities than other precious metals. Although undeniably an excellent store of value, silver is also one of the best conductors of electricity and is used everything from iPhones and other consumer devices to solar panels and EV batteries. According to statistics released since was used in smartphone manufacturing.

The largest growth in consumption industrial consumption continues to be driven by globalist climate change and green energy initiatives. Global statistics on solar panel manufacturing shows consistent year over year growth likely to continue based on the 2030 narratives.

Renewable energies represents an area where many see potential for continued increases in consumption. Compared to other metals, silver is relatively scarce in nature. There are very few naturally occurring silver ore deposits.

Most raw silver is mined as a by-product of other metals such as lead, copper and gold, which makes the mining of these other metals relatively more important.

Medical Applications

Silver plays a huge role in medical technology and with natural antibiotic properties. The invention of x-rays, MRI and other medical imaging technologies would not have been possible without silver.

Silver bromide is a chemical compound that is sensitive to light and plays a key role in X-Ray and photographic films.

Silver plays many hidden crucial roles in countless ways throughout our everyday lives. Around half of all silver mined annually is consumed during the production of over 3000 various technologies including integrated circuits, medical radiology equipment, water purification, photographic imaging and even explosives.

Silver is Undervalued

The gold-silver ratio is a great way of keeping track of silver’s fluctuations and its current value relative to gold. It demonstrates the relationship between their respective values and can be a way investors spot potential opportunities.

Over the long-term, the price of silver has steadily increased relative to the dollar due mainly to inflation.

Recent CPI data indicates that inflation continues to rise at a steady rate while the data used by the Fed in decision making lags behind the reality that consumers face each day.

Most countries fill their reserve vaults with gold, there are a few countries holding significant silver stockpiles such as Peru, Mexico and China.

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Storing Silver at Home

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Silver bullion typically does not need special treatment when it comes to storing at home. Many people are able to store their silver in a basic hiding place somewhere around their house.

Finding a place in your home to store silver does not need to be complicated. Simple is better, most of the time.

Some common hiding places that people choose may include places where other valuables are stored. Such as the drawer of a nightstand or desk, a bookshelf or a lockbox.

There are many options for storing 1 oz silver rounds at home. One of the easiest option is a plastic storage tube designed to store silver coins and rounds that has the same (or similar) diameters as the coins. These are similar to the plastic coin tubes that are used by the US Mint for silver eagle packaging.

Storage tubes are made from molded plastic that is specifically shaped and sized to fit specific coins and rounds based on their dimensions.

Many of the modern 1 oz silver rounds that are released by private mints are 39 mm in diameter. You can measure the specific silver rounds in your collection to ascertain the specific dimensions. Finding storage tubes that are the right size for your silver rounds is as easy as searching on Amazon or eBay.

Many reputable coin supply vendors sell their products through various online marketplaces to make it easy for collectors and investors to easily locate the items needed to protect your investment.

Plastic coin tubes are also available in rectangular shape that are designed specifically to hold up to twenty 1 oz silver bars. The compact size and shape of these coin tubes make it easy to store up to 20 oz silver in a small amount of space virtually anywhere in your home.

At Home Safe or Lockbox

Over time, many silver investors will look for better, more secure storage for their investment.

Firearms owners may already own a safe to keep firearms secure. It’s a logical and practical choice to store silver alongside of firearms at home.

With most 10 oz silver bars being of a similar size and shape as a deck of playing cards, a couple of them can be neatly stacked alongside boxes of ammo.

Various other options are plentiful for those new to precious metals that may not already have a gun safe at home.

For a secure installation at home, a safe should be mounted to part of the foundation of the house. This is not always possible due to the many variations in construction. Many will, instead, use bolts and mounts to secure the safe to the floor or wall framing.

Some silver stackers may even set up a diversion safe or a honeypot in a spot that would be obvious to thieves looking for a quick score. While keeping the real shiny stashed away in a less obvious location or in a diversion safe of some sort.

Diversion Safes

Diversion safes come in a variety of disguises that look like ordinary household objects. Most often used as a clandestine way of storing herbs and other medicines, these are also a great way for investors to keep their investment secure without having to invest in a large safe.

One of the first things to come to mind for many is the simple soda can safe. They are a basic and simple way to store silver in your refrigerator.

Other options include picture frames, book safes, hanging safes, in-wall safe disguised as an electric outlet. You can find hundreds of simple and effective options for hiding a couple of ounces in plain site.

It is a good idea when storing silver at home to be prepared. It doesn’t take long very long to fill a small safe with shiny metal. So when you are investing in a safe it is a good idea to plan ahead.

After a while, most investors will develop some diversity to their collection that may include a mix of silver bars of different sizes, 1 oz silver rounds and coins.

Ammo cans, either metal or plastic are a good size for storing various size silver bars and coin tubes together. They are strong, durable, air-tight, waterproof, lockable and are easy to keep hidden away.

They’re also portable and easy to grab if you need to pack up in a hurry. However, they’re also easy for a thief to grab unless they are secured.

While ammo cans are a good option in some scenarios, they are still not match for a good safe.

When buying a safe, you should consider your future plans. How much silver do you plan to buy per week? per month? per year? Will you trade silver for gold in the future?

A good home safe can be a significant investment that you don’t want to find yourself repeating every six months to a year.

There are a variety of consumer-grade home safes that can provide adequate protection for most investors that can be suitable for storing up to a few hundred ounces of silver.

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Why does silver sell above spot price?

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comex silver bars in warehouse

An explanation of silver premiums

Spot price is the paper trading price for a COMEX futures contract of 5,000 troy ounces of silver.

One way to think about it is like barrels of oil. A barrel of crude oil contains 42 US gallons and is trading at around $65 per barrel, or roughly $1.57 per gallon.

So why is the price of gas at my local gas station higher than $1.57 per gallon?

There is a markup that comes at each step in the supply chain before it reaches the consumer.

Let’s say that a private mint like Scottsdale Mint buys a 5,000 ozt contract from COMEX and takes delivery.

There are costs to take delivery of the raw product, including transportation, security, settlement costs, etc.

The delivery will most likely consist of five 1,000 ozt bars.

The next step is to cut up a 1,000 ozt into pieces that can be melted down or to feed into an extrusion line.

Labor costs, cost to operate the furnace, equipment costs, etc.

Once the bar is in liquid form it can then be poured into molds to form bars. Or if the mint is using extrusion, into sheets or extruded bars, etc.

After that it needs to be weighed and stamped or pressed then packaged up to be sent to wholesalers or retailers.

The wholesaler will need to pay the mint for the manufacturing costs plus their profit and the cost of transportation from the mint to the wholesalers warehouse or depository.

The wholesaler then incurs costs to warehouse the metal, employ people to take orders, and pack and ship to retailers.

The retailer will pay for the metal plus the profit margins the wholesaler needs, the transportation costs from the wholesaler to their warehouse, depository or retail store.

Then the retailer has overhead costs. Rent, employees, utilities, etc.

They also need to make a profit if they are going to stay in business.

Each step along the supply chain adds additional cost.

These costs are all factored into the premium, which is why it costs more than spot price to buy silver.

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What is the difference between poured and cast silver bars?

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A question that is asked often is what is the difference between a poured silver bar and a cast silver bar?

Both poured and cast silver bars start with melted or liquified silver that is then poured into a mold. The difference mainly depends on the mold itself.

100 oz poured silver bar
Johnson Matthey 100 oz Poured Silver Bar

For poured silver bars, the heated silver is poured into an open mold, typically made of graphite or other heat resistant materials. The metal is left in the mold to cool. In doing such, the silver that is exposed to the open face of the mold will show cooling lines or striations.

10 oz PAMP Suisse Cast Silver Bar

Cast silver bars are also poured into forms or casting molds. However, these forms or molds will not have an open face like those used for open poured bars. These will not typically show pour lines because the mold is a usually a closed mold.

Casting is a technique often used when making silver and gold jewelry and silver art pieces, thus have a more consistent appearance. 

Poured and cast bars can have a similar look to them as they are both poured silver. Other types of silver bars, such as those that are manufactured using stamping or extruded methods will look distinctly different.

There are many investors and silver stackers prefer to buy poured or cast silver bars. These styles of silver bars often unique and show the craftsmanship that goes into creating each silver bar. Some that collect vintage silver bars, such as those made by Engelhard, Johnson Matthey and others have a preference for poured bars.

There are some current private mints that produce poured and cast bars. Argor-Heraeus has a new line of 10 oz cast silver bars that are also available in cast kilogram.

Germania Mint also now includes a line of cast silver bars that are available in a variety of different weights. Both are very popular with investors and collectors and are notable for their classic look.

Recently, even the notable Swiss refinery, PAMP Suisse, released a line of cast silver bars. The bars initially are available in 500 gram, 1 kilo and 100 oz sizes.

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New Products Added – Now Tracking Platinum Coins

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Platinum 1 oz coins have been seeing an increase in investor demand. We recently began tracking the prices of platinum 1 oz coins across major online trusted and reputable bullion dealers.

So far, we have begun tracking prices on the following platinum coins:

In the coming weeks we will be adding more 1 oz Platinum Coins, 1 oz Platinum Bars as well as fractional platinum coins.

We have also added some new silver products to our price tracking, including:

We have also begun tracking dealer prices for those looking to buy 10 oz PAMP Suisse Lady Fortuna 24k Gold Bars.

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10 oz Silver Bars – Where to find the best prices

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silver at spot price deals

10 oz Silver Bars are one of the most popular silver bullion products available today. Each bar contains 10 troy ounces of fine silver.

In general, a 10 oz silver bar is roughly the dimensions of a deck of cards, only slightly thinner.

Dealer premiums on 10 oz silver bars are lower than many other silver bullion items.

One dealer, SilverGoldBull.com has an offer available to purchase on of their 10 oz Silver Bars at spot price. The bar, which is manufactured by The Sunshine Mint, features the Silver Gold Bull charging bull logo. The 10 oz silver for spot price offer includes free shipping.

10 oz silver bars are easily stackable and compact making them easy to store.

They are readily available from most online bullion dealers. Compare the prices of 10 oz silver bars.

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Buy Silver Bullion

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buy silver bullion

Investors have started to buy silver bullion to hedge against inflation and protect their wealth during economic downturns. Buying silver bullion is one of the most effective ways to diversify your investment portfolio. For many savvy investors, silver bullion continues to be the precious metal of choice.

Silver bullion comes in a variety of shapes, weights, brands and designs. Silver bullion is most commonly bought in the form of rounds or bars. Silver bullion in the form of bars and rounds are sold strictly for their precious metals content. They are priced based on their weight in troy ounces relative to the spot price of silver.

Silver bars and rounds are minted both private mints and sovereign government mints around the world. The most commonly bought silver bullion products range in size from 1 oz up to 1 kilo. There is a wide variety of silver bullion products available for investors with a wide range of budgets.

While there are services that allow you to purchase silver bullion and store it in their vaults, the majority of investors and stackers prefer to take delivery of precious metals. Most stick to the common catch phrase of “If you don’t hold it, you don’t own it”.

What type of Silver Bullion is for sale?

Government Bullion

Silver bullion can be bought in a wide variety of shapes, sizes and weights. In the United States, the most commonly purchased and widely recognized is the American Silver Eagle coin. American Silver Eagles are the official silver bullion coin of the United States and is minted by the US Mint.

Other popular silver bullion coins that are produced by sovereign governments include:

Silver Bullion coins that are minted by sovereign governments are sold at a greater premium over silver spot price than privately minted or generic bullion. This is because government backed bullion is guaranteed for it’s purity by the mint and is widely recognized by investors.

Private Mint Bullion

Silver bars and rounds are minted by private mints around the world. Investors buy silver bullion products from private mints for their silver weight.

Silver Bars and rounds are most commonly produced in 1 oz weight denominations. It is also common to find silver bars that weigh 5 ounces, 10 ounces, kilo and 100 ounce sizes. The most common cast silver bars will be stamped with the manufacturer, the weight of the bar, and the purity or fineness of the silver (usually .999).

The premiums on silver rounds and bars are usually closer to spot price than government bullion.

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Why 10 ounce silver bars are an Ideal Investment

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silvergoldbull 10 oz silver bars spot price

When starting to invest in silver and gold bullion many new investors are confused by all the different products.

Many new investors go all in on government silver coins like the American Silver Eagle or the Silver Canadian Maple Leaf. It is a good idea to have a core foundation that contains government bullion.

They are the most widely recognized silver bullion coins in North America. That makes them one the most liquid silver investment options.

Where do you go once you’ve built a foundation around Silver Eagles or Maple Leafs?

One path many investors take is to begin buying silver bars to add to their portfolio. Ten ounce silver bars are an optimal size and weight.

Several international sovereign mints produce 10 oz silver bars. The most notable are the Britannia Series 10 oz Silver Bar from the Royal Mint and the Royal Canadian Mint 10 oz Silver Bar.

The premiums on government minted silver bars are generally higher than private mint.

There are a lot more buying options available when shopping for private mint silver bars.

Ten ounce silver bars are the ideal investment for a variety of reason.

  1. Size – In general, most ten ounce silver bars are roughly 3.5 inches by about 1.75 inches and about 1/2 inch thick. The specific dimensions will vary from mint to mint. The dimensions of most bars of this weight from the Silvertowne Mint are 76.2 x 38.1 x 11.1 mm. Similar to the size of a deck of playing cards.
  2. Stackable – 10 ounce silver bars are easy to stack in a discrete, small amount of space. The Scottsdale Mint “Stacker” 10 oz silver bar may be the ultimate in stackable silver. These bars are slightly thicker and have a smaller length and width.
  3. Lower dealer premium – When it comes to premiums on silver bars, the 10 ounce size sits at a sweet spot. As bars get larger in size, the premium per ounce typically gets lower. Secondary market bars often have the lowest premiums.
  4. Free Shipping – Many online bullion dealers offer free shipping above a certain threshold. The minimum purchase amount for free shipping for some dealers is as low as $99 to $199.  
  5. Easy to sell – Unlike larger size bars such as those that weigh 100 ounces, 10 ounce silver bars are easy to sell close to spot price. Secondary market ten ounce silver bars are one of the most popular items available today.

10 ounce silver bars are produced by all of the major private mints. They are sold by all of the online trusted and reputable bullion dealers.

Where to buy 10 ounce silver bars

10 ounce silver bars can be bought from nearly all of the trusted online bullion dealers. They are one of the most common size bars produced by private mints.

You can buy 10 ounce silver bars online.

Generic Silver Bars vs. Brand Name

Most online bullion dealers sell both generic 10 ounce silver bars and specific brand named silver bars. The term generic silver bars is a bit misleading though, as these bars are manufactured by a major mint.

Dealers use the term generic silver bars to identify silver bullion bars that have been acquired on the secondary market. Oftentimes these bars may be older, have some tarnish and scratches and will have been bought from private individuals. Dealers usually have random inventory of these bars so they are offered at a discount compared to named brand silver bars. Generic or secondary market silver bars will alway contain at least .999 pure silver.

The premium on buying random manufacturer generic silver bars will usually cost less per ounce than those that are sold as new.

Most times it will be cheaper to buy a 10 ounce silver bar than it will to buy 10 individual 1 ounce bars.