Silver Slaughtered By Selling Pressures
As the global economy continues to trudge forward, precious metals have taken quite a hit. Much ado has been made about gold prices making fresh lows and when the right time is to buy the yellow commodity, but its sister metal, silver, has been somewhat overshadowed, as it too has been faced with a fair amount of selling pressure. This year alone, silver prices have dipped over 11%, with a fair amount of that drop coming in just the last few days [for more silver news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].
Silver Slips As Economy Roars Forward
Silver prices have long been known for their volatility, as the precious metal rarely has a quiet day. As such, investors typically keep a close eye on the commodity. Though silver started off the year with a bang, it has since retreated, and it is now down about 5% on the year. Meanwhile, the U.S. economy has been surging, with the Down Jones Industrial Average breaking record highs last week [for more silver news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].
Investing In Silver: The Definitive Guide
Silver has been an important metal for thousands of years, often used as a medium of exchange or jewelry in ancient times. The mineral was traditionally mined alongside copper and lead deposits across the Near East and the Mediterranean around the height of the Roman Empire. After the Spanish conquests of the New World, the focus of the silver market shifted to Latin America and the massive deposits located in Mexico, Bolivia, and most importantly, Peru. Briefly, the U.S. was at one time the world’s largest silver producer thanks to the discovery of a massive silver deposit in Nevada (the Silver State), although this production eventually petered out and Latin American production once again reigned supreme [for more silver news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].
Monster Gains In 2012: Leveraged Gold vs. Leveraged Silver
Precious metals have become increasingly popular in recent years, as continued easing from central banks around the world and escalating fear over the global economy has led to a massive inflow for these commodities. Though most are comfortable with your standard bullion or ETF, others bet big on these assets by utilizing leveraged funds. Thus far in 2012, both leveraged gold and silver funds have performed extremely well, making them an enticing play for traders who can stomach the risk associated with these products [for more gold and silver news subscribe to our free newsletter].
The Most Popular Leveraged Commodity ETFs
Commodity ETFs give investors the chance to play the commodities market like they were never able to before, now even part time investors are able to get a piece of these quickly evolving markets. For some, this access was not diverse enough, and demanded leveraged ETFs as an advanced way of investing, where the fund will work to double or some times even triple the outcome of an index. These funds are not recommended for the part time or risk averse investor, but as one of the largest growing sectors in commodity investing, it seems clear some are ready to take on the leveraged risk [for more commodity ETF news and analysis subscribe to our free newsletter].
Complete List Of New 2011 Commodity ETFs
This year saw a surge in popularity for commodity investing. As the years have passed, investors have seen the benefits of investing in the risky, but lucrative asset class. Commodities provide a protection against inflation as well as a low correlation to equities. One of the biggest problems within the industry was the lack of options available to investors just a few years ago. It used to be that only those with a complex futures account were able to add these securities to their portfolios. Now, there are hundreds of products to help even the smallest investor gain access to their favorite commodity investment. Below, we outline all of the commodity exchange traded products that hit the market this year [see also 12 High-Yielding Commodities For 2012].
