Investment demand and sales of silver coins have surged in 2016. The Silver Institute notes that in the first half of 2016, the price of silver has gained 44%. Blanchard writes:
Investment demand for silver has been increasing on almost every front. ETF holdings hit a record high of more than 662 million ounces, while net longs in the futures and options markets also are at all-time levels.
And in the physical market, coin sales are booming again in 2016, up 29% for the first quarter of this year, growing at “at double digit paces in all the major regions” of the world. The only down spot the institute found was a dropoff in the consumption of silver bars in the first half.
