Loading ...Even though it is the best conductor of electricity. Likewise we don’t build ships of gold, even though it never rusts. So when the price of silver shoots up, manufacturers change to copper because the drawbacks of copper are outweighed by the lower price.
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/soaring-silver-prices-force-solar-makers-rethink-materials
This won’t happen overnight – in Q2 2026 according to the article – but if industrial demand was a major driver of the price surge the substitution will have an effect. While industrial demand must’ve pushed the price up some, I suspect that investment as a substitute for gold is/has become the prime driver now that people have been reminded that there is a cheaper alternative to gold. “Cheaper” only meaning I can really feel the weight of $500 of silver! And I can see it without a magnifying glass.