How High Can Silver Go in 2016?

It’s only Tuesday, but already it’s been a good week for the silver price. 

According to Bloomberg, the white metal has risen an impressive 7.8 percent in the last five sessions, and on Tuesday reached $16.23 per ounce on the COMEX in New York – that’s the highest price for a most-active contract in over five months. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold was good for just 77.6271 ounces of silver on Tuesday, the least since February 9.

Given those circumstances, many investors are now asking themselves, “how high can silver go in 2016?” Read on for a look at what may be in store for the precious metal.

Get Our Expert Guide to Silver Investing FREE!

Download this FREE Special Report, When Will Silver Go Up: Is the Highest Price of Silver Still to Come?

 

Gold leading silver

Silver’s recent gains are largely being driven by US dollar, which according to Kitco News hit an eight-month low overnight Monday. Increasing speculation that the US Federal Reserve will be slow to raise interest rates has also been a factor, as has the current rally in the crude oil market.

Interestingly, silver’s run this week comes long after the gold price has gone on a tear. As Gold Stock Bull points out, that’s not the norm – “silver typically leads gold higher and outperforms during major advances in the sector,” the news outlet states. Check out the chart below to see how the two metals have performed this year:

Silver vs. gold price performance year-to-date. Image courtesy of Kitco.

The fact that gold has outperformed silver for much of 2016 has been a source of concern for many market watchers. As Gold Stock Bull states, that’s partially because it’s drawn the sustainability of gold’s rally into question – in other words, could gold’s good performance be just a false start?

With silver now picking up (it’s up about 14.5 percent year-to-date compared to gold at just under 18 percent), gold’s rally is starting to look more sustainable. It’s that optimism that’s now driving investors to wonder, “how high can silver go in 2016?”

How high can silver go in 2016?

While it’s impossible to say exactly how high the white metal will go this year, it’s worth noting that the fundamentals are on its side – both industrial and investment demand for silver are expected to remain strong this year.

It’s also worth noting that analysts appear to believe good things could be in store for silver. As Commerzbank (ETR:CBK) analyst Daniel Briesemann recently told Bloomberg, “