00:00Robin Barr is an independent metals analyst. He says silver's boom is down to its integral status in so many industries.
00:08As well as the more traditional drivers of silver, which are the same as for gold, silver has more of an industrial component.
00:21It's driven by usage in solar panels, in industrial applications.
00:27That's coming to the fore, particularly with the green energy transition.
00:33Silver is a vital component of the energy transition, so it's also booming because of this additional demand coming through.
00:45Why is India so important in this story?
00:48India has had a long cultural tradition of being active in silver.
00:58Think of the silverware, the silver teapots and jewellery that are centuries old.
01:04So India has a long affinity, probably longer affinity with silver than with gold.
01:12So it's part of the natural psyche, if you like, of the country.
01:18But supply does seem to be a constant issue.
01:22So what's happening in the vaults where all that silver bullion is usually stored?
01:27Physical demand is robust, very strong, and therefore silver is being drained from inventory,
01:36including that being held in the vaults to feed this physical demand.
01:42There's a shortage in London, in the London vaults, where the majority of the silver bars are stored.
01:52And that is causing the silver supply to tighten immensely.
02:00And supply and demand drive commodity prices.
02:05If demand is high and supply is falling short, then the consequence is to have higher and rising prices.
02:17We've talked a little bit about India, but what about other markets that feed into the whole silver ecosystem?
02:23I'm thinking China, I'm thinking the United States.
02:25You've already mentioned the UK.
02:27What's going on?
02:28Very strong demand, what we're seeing in one countries being replicated, particularly in countries that have a strong industrial base.
02:40And China comes to mind.
02:42Southeast Asia, Korea, Taiwan, these countries come to mind.
02:47Because they're manufacturing, fabricating industrial products, and they contain silver, which is an important component in these products.
03:00So it's a worldwide trend, and we're seeing it happening all over the globe.
03:10And this is why it could be different this time, in that silver could go considerably higher than we've seen in previous upcycles.
03:22It's interesting, the way you're talking about silver.
03:24It's like it straddles precious metals and industrial metals.
03:29So I wonder what your outlook is for silver compared to other metals.
03:34Very strong.
03:35I would put silver in with copper and perhaps tin.
03:41These are indispensable to the energy transition.
03:46If we are, as a world, to decarbonise, move away from fossil fuels, then we need metals like silver and copper and others to enable that transition.
04:00So it's vital.
04:02Without silver, we don't have an energy transition.
04:05We don't have the solar panels.
04:08We don't have the renewable energy that's needed to decarbonise the world.
04:14So it cannot, its strength and its usage cannot be understated.
04:20So it's so important.
04:22you
04:23So it's
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