We’ve heard many a price projection from precious metals analysts, but none so optimistic as that of Jeff Nielson. Mr. Nielson argues that silver’s supply/demand fundamentals, coupled with novel innovations in the technology and health care sectors, will lead to explosive price growth beyond what most can imagine.
Excerpt From The Silver Price Spiral:
I will abbreviate this discussion by just pointing out the various reasons why industrial demand must continue to rise rapidly, irrespective of the price. In most of its industrial applications, it is either vastly superior to any other metal, or (in the case of its anti-bacterial properties) totally unique. This makes its “substitution rate†very low, or even zero. It is also the most versatile metal, with more new patents being filed for silver-based applications than for any other metal. It is being utilized in many of our most-dynamic “high-tech†sectors, from being a component in computers; solar power; and a nearly infinite number of brand-new medical/hygiene applications: in everything from body-washes to upholstery.
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Thus, as I stated at the beginning, it is a fait accompli that the price of silver is heading for a three-digit number. The interesting question becomes: what will be the first digit of that number?
In that respect, I offer four key dynamics to make my case that the first digit of the (three-digit) price for silver will be closer to a “9†than a “1†– most likely at some point this decade, and we cannot discount the possibility of silver rising to the $1000/oz-level.
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Silver is roughly 17 times as common as gold in the Earth’s crust. This differential has been exaggerated by the grossly disproportional price ratio between silver and gold – which is currently greater than 60:1, and has remained at or above 50:1 for most of the last two decades. However, as I have discussed previously, one of those two parameters has already changed dramatically.
With somewhere around 90% of global stockpiles of silver gone, the amount of (above-ground) silver versus gold is nowhere near that historical, 17:1 ratio. While no firm numbers exist to quantify this, estimates I have seen range from there being six times as much silver as gold, while some commentators are already maintaining that the amount of available gold in the world now exceeds the amount of silver.
Given such parameters, the current 60:1 price ratio is absolutely ridiculous – even without factoring-in all the demand fundamentals which I have mentioned previously. When we include those factors, it becomes safe to conclude that (at current prices) silver is the most-undervalued of all commodities in the world, today, and arguably the most-undervalued commodity in modern economic history.
Thus, an “explosion†in the price of silver is coming – and coming soon…and when that explosion takes place, it will be the re-discovery of silver as jewelry which will be the additional variable in propelling silver toward or above the $1000/oz-mark.
Read full article series:
The Silver Price-spiral, Part I: today
Makes sense; I hope he’s right. I’ve been buying 90% US coins on ebay for the past six months or so…
I hope he’s right too. Â The only way I’m going to get any gold is if I go out and pan for it. Â Silver on the other hand…..we can all afford that.
Silver, rediscovered for jewelry? I don’t think so. It tarnishes. Thats why God gave us Platinum. But I do expect the price to rise significantly for several reasons; maybe a hundred fold.
First, historically its been used for a store of value and in exchange for goods and services; as a cheaper substitute for gold. Â Second it has numerous industrial uses due to its physical properties. Third, it has the anti bacterial properties mentioned in the post. Fourth, silver is consumed as it is used.
Increasing 1000% percent in the next decade? Sugar, maybe. If you can find it at all.
Read the post wrong. Silver to $200 per ounce, and sugar? Well if you can find it after the crash, the flash, and the shift, yeah that will go up 1000%.
Stock up if you have a sweet tooth.
Gold/Silver ratio is not 1/17 !! beside that fact keep in mind what really counts: silver production today is eight times of gold – mostly industrial use but there is LESS SILVER THAN GOLD TO BUY FOR INVESTOR PURPOSE ONLY
Buy only Candian dollars – when the US goes like Zimbabwe no one would wont to buy those American Eagles – just imagine buying a Zimbabwe silver coin – just wouldnt do that. Maples are the best bet by far
silver is silver from zimbabway or germany
Comments…..Matt you are wrong, America is the greatest country of all time. The reason silver will explode in price is because there won’t be any silver. The us mint will stop producing eagles thus shooting its value even greater than spot price. Read Israel Friedman if you want to know the truth of eagles. He says they will be the most expensive coin of all.Â
American Eagles are silver. No one gives a sh!@ about where the silver was mined or minted. Â Kruggerands are the most popular gold coin worldwide and no one wants to move to SA
Also if you can afford silver, you can afford fractional gold. Not recommending it, just saying.
Agreed Daniel Miller. An ounce of silver is an ounce of silver. However as a collectable ( if there are any collectors left after teotwawki ) coins minted in South Africa may have some additional value.
They won’t be minting any more.
Daniel Miller – South Africa still produce and their debt levels are far less than most countries – google it. It might be a wise choice now to packup and emigrate to SA because your dollars wont buy you a thing in the near future. Detroit is a glimpse to the whole of the American future
South Africa will be the wrong place to be when the SHTF and TEOTWAWKI comes after the crash, flash, and splash.
haha – thats funny. I am in the UK and if the SHTF thats where I am going to go. Pounds can buy a lot there still. Even though the rand has strengthed over 35% against the dollar/pound/eur in the past 10 months. Thats were smart people would go and thats why more people are buying into the currency as a just in case. Aus is a mess waiting to happen. Mining tax with a huge property bubble mirroring the US, US a huge no no - Zim would be a better choice than the US. Once China stops buying the US dollars the game of money prinitng and good life is over forever.  Europe – with potential food shortages you cant growth your own food there the whole year round – climate for growing food in your back garden in SA exists. Cheap 4 bedroom house for $80k. List goes on and on. Makes sense to me.
Comments…..Silver coins are more practical than gold if we end up with no paper currency.  Canada may be the best refuge if it all goes to hell.  Agriculture, educated hardworking people, gold and silver mines.  There are many places  in the world where being a foreigner and the wrong race is a problem if chaos rules.
Matt: It does make sense. But to be rational is not a cure for irrational times and events. You must think outside the box to survive. If you are in the UK, go to the Highlands, or migrate to Scandinavia. Those are “safe” areas. South Africa is not.
Read “Earth Changes” by Edgar Cayce, A.R.E. Press to get a better perspective of the “Changes”.
Zukadu – you dont make any sense – if the SHTF – you want me to freeze to death. What a bad idea. Imagine no electricty or your are homeless. You try living in winters where its minus degress and see how long you will live. You just nuts!
Matt,
Think about it for a moment.  Every whako with a bag full of guns is going to head for warm weather locations if TSHTF, thinking that they can finally get in some of that good life in the tropics.  My plan is the exact opposite.  I’m heading north from Washington state (if forced to bug out).  I figure that the colder the climate, the fewer people  there will be around me competing for food.  There are plenty of fish in the rivers, and plenty of animals to hunt.  You just need good cold weather gear and experience with bad weather to make it.  Being in an area where the environment works to kill off your competition is better than you having to worry about roving bands of maniacs on harleys or idiot cops/para-military types banding together to take from others.  You can bet your ass that the warm weather areas will be clogged with people like that.
Jonny V
You have a good point – the only thing if you have young kids it makes it harder to take that decision and go for the cold places. If I was alone that would make perfect sense
Matt: We may ALL be short of electricity soon enough if the EMP from the CME hits in 2012 as some believe. In 2015 the Poles are poised to shift. There is already a shift in the N magnetic pole towards Russia. US scientists have detected and are studying a “massive magnetic anomaly” in the South Atlantic: exactly as Cayce predicted more than 70 years ago.
Read the book, buy some “long johns”, and quit whining. Whiners will not survive. When the SHTF you most likely won’t be able to book passage anywhere, anyway. You will have to make do with what you have where you are at that time.
Adapt or die.
It’s good to know that the poorman money will have an opportunity to go to that level so that the poor may at least not so poor…
http://ywidjaja.wordpress.com/
how come there are so many different predictions? Howard Ruff – above 100, Mike Maloney – 1500, Jeff Nieson – 1000
who’s correct?
KingKang.. One more name you could have mentioned, and that is Robert Kiyosaki; he owns a silver mine, so naturally he talks about the price of silver reaching astronomical heights also.
The peddlers of silver today are like the snake oil salesmen of yesteryear who roamed from one small town to another selling elixirs that could cure every ailment known to man.. and… the rubes believed them.
If silver is so precious, why were silver miners so delighted when the spot price of silver reached $37 in May, 2011?
The reason being, the cost of mining and refining an ounce of silver was between $4.50 and $7.00 depending on the location of the mines.
Now I’m not saying that silver has less value than the “Obama/Bernanke’s Funny Money”, even a lead slug has more worth.
What I’m saying is, that those selling silver are telling everyone who will listen of its great worth, however if someone was trying to sell to them, the reverse would be the case, they would then be pointing out how really worthless silver is.
As P.T. Barnum is credited with saying. “There’s one born every minute”.
Good synapsis! This is why I am investing at rock bottom prices. I am getting a good quantity of US silver coins at approx. $16.50 a troy ounce. Date 11/22/??
KINGKANG- BECAUSE THEIR JOB IS TO SELL ,BE IT ADVICE , NEWSLETTERS, HITS ON WEBSITE,ADVERTISING. DONT GET ME WRONG. SILVER IS A GREAT PLAY, BUT WHEN PEOPLE NEED TO EAT OR PAY BILLS ,THEY WILL HAVE TO SELL THEIR SILVER AND GOLD. IT WILL NEVER HIT 1000
They said gold would never , ever go to $1,000 and what do you know. Now, gold may go as high, they predict, as $10,000.
How many trillions upon trillions of FRN’s does it take to make $10,000 gold, or $1,000 silver? I couldn’t say, but we’re headed there at full speed.
Comments…..$ 1000…easy…why ?…supply & demand .
Comments…..well i just started buying silver 999 coins got about 70 onces got american Australian canada maple and a few privet minted in the USA is this the right way to buy silver average price i paid is $23 Aust dollars also i got 5 coins that r collectable 999coins limited minted or is it better to buy shares in silver company
Yeah i am into buying silver over gold, its just too expensive gold right now. And I think silver will multiply its value more than gold.
Food first gentlemen
You know what kind of metal id invest in??? LEAD!! and a whole lot of guns! Suppose you were stuck in an elevator…one guy had a pile of food…one had gold and silver…one had water…and I had a loaded 12 gauge shot gun….who do you think would survive out of the 4 of us? Gold, Silver are great investments….but Lead and guns are #1! mark my words!!
I agree with you on what to have for emergencies. Â Food is important. Â So are medical supplies. Â However I believe for an investment silver shines. Â Yes guns have become expensive etc. but they must be maintained and will not provide you any real MONEY. Â The silver may buy more food than the gun. Â Depends on how you look at it. Â Many have water and guns but only two percent know anything about why silver is the best investment available now besides FOOD. Â I doubt that you result to violence when you can easily go hunting yourself with that gun………………Besides there is no shortage of lead. Â Cheers……..
Hold a tube of Silver Eagles in your hand. I can not believe most people would not feel the power the Silver Generates –just being Silver–The power is there, Silver is special!!
The heading of “Silver Price Projection : $1000 per ounce This Decade, leaves much to the imagination.
Today’s date is September 14Th, 2011, so has the author of the article covered his rear end by being so ambiguous?
Is he claiming that the price of an ounce of silver might go to $1000 between now and the year 2022? WOW! Just think, we will only have to wait for TEN years to find out.
i believe $1000 per ounce for silver is enivatable, as the cost of living goes up and more and more money gets printed, every metal will go higher, paper money will lose its value, stock market companies will come and go, but gold and silver bars, never liquidate and have more pysical presence than a super annuation account in a recession or stock market crash.
10years from now $500 dollars will be loose change but not bad if u buy silver now at $20 per ounce
Bought silver at 8 now worth 36
Bought gold at 1200 not worth 1800
Don’t even need a calculator to see which is doing better
Yeah, but anybody ever thought what a loaf of bread will cost in an 1000US$ per oz. Silver environment. I guess about 100$ at least.
god and silver will run the world when the empires fall. it will control contract killers and skilled mercenaries. people will take what they can from who they can. after martial law is declared the ones with the power decides you best believe the free lance type will go to the highest bidder no matter the danger. the ones with the riches will need able body men like me and loyalty is rarely gained by riches. my word has always been good. weapons will fail you people, when you cross an expert the marksmen is almost always surely to end up dead. sickly poor and well youll need more then good looks to keep you alive i can tell you that now. dec. 28 th 2011.
Very interesting comments on silver and yes its been used for thousands of yrs as currency but let’s be more realistic $1000 an oz, not in our life time. Price will go up slowly because of supply and demand India and china will have for its use in technology.Its far less expensive than gold and a great conductor therefor silver will be used more.
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20 27 dollers is pocket change no brainer! buy!buy!buy!!