At the end of 2025, silver surprised everyone when it quickly surpassed its highs and reached $80 per ounce. This rise has three clear reasons: the first is related to the increased demand for silver, which is destined for use as a store of value and in industry. The second reason comes from restrictions in the supply of silver by the second largest producer. The last is that the supply of silver cannot keep up with the demand, creating a disparity that is difficult to resolve. Come discover all the factors that led to the silver price rising!
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[ENGLISH VERSION]
Demand - Store of Value and Electronics
The first issue relates to the growing demand for silver. Precious metals like gold and silver have long been used by various civilizations as currency and also as a form of store of value. So much so that if you could go back in time, if you could take something to the past, it's very likely that taking some gold or silver would be accepted. So, the first issue is precisely this: the demand for silver has been growing because countries and part of the population have seen silver as a form of store of value, in the face of fiat currencies that suffer from inflation.
Furthermore, silver is not only sought after as a store of value. Silver is a mineral widely used in electronics due to its good electrical conductivity; an example is its use in solar energy as a conductive layer in solar cells. Also, speaking of technology, silver is used in telephones and, more recently, research has emerged on the use of silver in the creation of solid-state batteries to store energy. The great revolution of this battery is that normally they have a liquid part which has risks if it leaks, there is expansion, and in the case of a solid-state battery these problems would be solved.
All this demand for silver in industries and purchases by countries, especially India, for the ore to use as part of the country's reserves, has been one of the factors that led to the price of silver skyrocketing by more than 140% in just one year, reaching over $80 per ounce a few days ago. Shortly after, there was a retraction to values close to $72, but compared to what it was in mid-2025 – $35 – the price is still quite high.
Restrictions on Silver Supply
A second factor influencing the rise in silver prices was related to restrictions on silver exports by China, the world's second-largest silver producer, with 3,330 tons of the mineral, second only to Mexico. which produces almost double that amount with 6,300 tons. Export restrictions don't have such a large impact, but they are still relevant and end up impacting the market because it's a "reduction" / "hindering" in the supply of silver worldwide, and according to the law of supply and demand, when supply decreases and demand remains the same, prices rise, but in the case of silver, to make matters worse, demand has been rising.
Problems with Silver Being a Byproduct
Another factor that further complicates the issue of supply and demand is the fact that silver is a byproduct of other mining processes. Silver is a byproduct in 70% of cases; that is, 70% of the silver supply does not come from silver mines, but rather from other mining operations focused on other minerals that also mine silver, but it is not their primary source. This triggers a fundamental principle of the law of supply and demand, which states that when demand increases and prices rise, as was the case with silver, there are incentives for producers to increase their production.
However, since silver is a byproduct, supply cannot keep up with demand because there are few specific silver mines that could increase their production in a scenario of rising silver prices. The remaining 70-80% of silver sources, which come from other mining operations, will not mine more of the other product simply because the price of silver has increased.
