What Are the Popular Types of Precious Metals?

The global precious metals market is worth at a staggering $182bn. For most of human history, precious metals have been a tradeable commodity and a source of wealth for many people.

If you’ve been thinking of making an investment in precious metals, then you’ll no doubt be curious to know about the different types of precious metals.

Let’s take a look at three of the most popular and valuable precious metals.

Gold

Gold is, if you’ll pardon the pun, the gold standard of precious metals. It is the one that everybody knows about and everybody wants. For almost the entirety of human history, gold has been the precious metal of choice.

The reason for this is that gold is incredibly versatile and durable as a metal. It doesn’t corrode or rust and it is very malleable, hence its use for making jewelry and other fineries.

Gold has also long been a form of currency around the world. The value of gold is constantly being updated and revised every minute of every day. Unlike other commodities, the price of gold isn’t solely determined by the laws of supply and demand.

The reason for this is that the amount of hoarded gold above ground is always going to exceed the amount of gold that can be newly discovered in one mine.

When the people who hold the gold want to sell, the price goes down, and when those people are less inclined to sell, the price gets driven up.

Silver

The next most well-known precious metal is silver. Like gold, people love it for its durability and lightweight qualities. The main difference between silver and gold is that silver is more often used in industrial contexts when compared to gold. This causes more volatile price swings when it comes to the value of silver.

Silver mostly trades as gold does; a commodity that people hoard. But because of its industrial applications, its price is more likely to be affected by the laws of supply and demand.

Most silver on the market today is “sterling silver”. The term sterling simply means that the metal is around 92.5% sterling, with a certain percentage of copper making up the rest of the metal.

Platinum

Finally, we have platinum. Platinum is probably the least well-known of the three precious metals on this list. Much like gold and silver, platinum is traded globally on the commodities market and is a metal that is hoarded as a form of wealth.

Platinum tends to fetch a higher price than gold or silver for one simple reason: it is much rarer. There are simply fewer available platinum stores underground.

Invest in Different Types of Precious Metals Today

There are many types of precious metals in the world, the three listed above are just a few of the most popular and valuable. There is money to be made trading these metals, and if you want to get a start investing in precious metals, then contact CMI today.

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