Top 3 Countries With The Most In-Ground Reserves of Silver

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Silver investment, broadly speaking, has played an important role in the world as a means of currency or ornamentation for nearly 50 centuries.

The silver was believed to have first been extracted nearly 5000 years ago in Turkey. Sources recognize silver to be among the most malleable and conductive of metals. Further, silver prices remain one of the stronger commodities and oil, natural gas and other metals, including lead, copper and gold. Typically, silver is mined as a by-product from other metals but still enjoys a strong position in the futures and commodities markets.

The mining of silver has occurred in the new world from around 1500 CE to 1800 CE. Its largest predominance was and remained Peru. Initially, Bolivia and Mexico were noted to follow behind Peru to extract silver during the aforementioned period. Presently, Peru, Poland, and Australia are the three largest countries either producing silver or having in-ground reserves of silver. The reserve aids investment opportunity in this commodity as it is given stability through an ongoing reservation.

The US Geologic Survey maintains records on the production of futures and commodities. The survey notes that as recently as 2014, Peru mined over 3.5 tons of silver. Poland noted to have the second-largest in-ground reserve mined over 40 million ounces of silver. Australia has been reported to mine nearly 1900 tons of silver in 2014. Thus, Peru, Poland, and Australia are presently the three largest countries noted for silver production.

There are several ways one can invest in silver: purchasing stocks, iShare mutual funds, coinage or bars, futures and or commodities. Investing in silver is inexpensive compared to other choices. Silver is used largely across industrial applications to include medical, dental, photographic, and electronics. Silver also serves as an investor’s hedge against inflation in an investment portfolio.

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