Silver futures surpassed $15 an ounce Thursday for the first time in more than nine months, rising more than 2% as hopes for an economic recovery raised inflation concerns.
The metal has many industrial uses, but it is also seen as a hedge against inflation. With newly released economic data indicating an economic recovery and with concerns over long-term inflation rising, investors pushed up silver prices.
The metal has gained 34% this year. In comparison, gold has risen less than 10%.
In Thursday trading, silver for July delivery, the most active contract, rose 29.5 cents, or more than 2%, to end at $15.16 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It rose above the $15 level for the first time since early August. The much less active June contract ended at $15.15 an ounce.
"The $15 level is a break-out area for silver," said George Gero, a precious-metals trader for RBC Capital Markets. "Silver is not a pure precious metal. It's also an industrial. So what helps silver is the fact that there could be a recovery."
Trading in copper and crude oil has also signaled investors' hopes for an economic recovery. Copper futures have rallied more than 50% this year, while crude has gained more than 40%.
Economic optimism was reinforced Thursday by a pair of U.S. government reports that showed the number of new layoffs declined last week and durable-goods orders rose more than predicted last month.
The number of new layoffs declined by 13,000 to 623,000 last week, while the number of people collecting state unemployment benefits rose by 110,000 to a record 6.79 million, the Labor Department reported.
Original Post
You need Adobe Flash Player 9 to view this widget.
