Silver has been making significant moves in the precious metals market, capturing the attention of investors worldwide, particularly the Wall Street Silver community. After breaking past US$20 per ounce in 2020 for the first time in four years, the price of silver has repeatedly tested the US$30 mark. Since September 2024, it has consistently remained above US$30, even reaching a 12-year peak on October 22, approaching US$35. Although it receded slightly in November, US$30 has established itself as a solid support level.
A prominent voice in the silver space, Keith Neumeyer, CEO of First Majestic Silver, has long been a proponent of silver’s potential, predicting it could soar to US$100 or even US$130 per ounce. This bold forecast has resonated with many, especially within the Wall Street Silver online community, known for its bullish stance on the metal.
Neumeyer’s conviction isn’t new. He first voiced a US$130 target back in a 2017 interview with Palisade Radio and reiterated his US$100+ outlook in a 2022 interview specifically with Wall Street Silver. He has consistently repeated his triple-digit silver price forecast in numerous Kitco interviews, including one in March 2023.
In 2024, Neumeyer further emphasized his US$100 prediction in discussions with Daniela Cambone of ITM Trading at the PDAC convention, and in April on the Todd Ault Podcast, where he jokingly acknowledged his reputation as the “triple-digit silver guy.”
He attributes his US$100 silver price target to several key factors: persistent silver market deficits, growing industrial demand, and silver’s undervalued status compared to gold. In more audacious moments, like in 2016, he even suggested silver could reach US$1,000 if gold were to hit US$10,000. While his timeline for US$100 silver has been extended, his long-term bullish outlook remains strong.
To assess the credibility of Neumeyer’s prediction and the possibility of triple-digit silver prices, particularly from the perspective of Wall Street Silver enthusiasts, it’s crucial to examine the factors influencing silver prices, historical price trends, and the opinions of other industry experts. Let’s delve into the rationale behind Neumeyer’s US$100 forecast.
Why Wall Street Silver Listens to Neumeyer’s US$100 Silver Price Call
For silver to reach the ambitious US$100 target Neumeyer has set, it would need to surge by approximately 350 percent from its current levels. This significant increase requires a robust catalyst and favorable market conditions, factors closely watched by the Wall Street Silver community.
Neumeyer’s projection of triple-digit silver is partly rooted in his analysis of market cycles, drawing parallels to the year 2000 when the dot-com bubble was at its peak and the mining sector was undervalued. He anticipates a market correction, similar to the rebound in commodities seen in 2001 and 2002. It was during this period that Neumeyer made substantial investments in mining stocks, which proved highly successful.
“I’ve been calling for triple-digit silver for a few years now, and I’m more enthused now,” Neumeyer stated at an event in January 2020, while also expressing a note of caution about the timing. He acknowledged that his initial expectations for a quicker price surge had not yet materialized.
In his August 2022 interview with Wall Street Silver, a platform popular among silver investors, he reinforced his triple-digit silver outlook, noting he wasn’t alone in his bullish view. He even mentioned seeing predictions as high as US$500 silver, though he himself remained more conservative, aiming for US$50 first.
Another cornerstone of Neumeyer’s bullish stance, and a key talking point within Wall Street Silver circles, is his assertion that the silver market is experiencing a persistent deficit. In a May 2021 interview, he directly challenged supply-side data from the Silver Institute indicating a silver market surplus, dismissing the numbers as “made up” and unreliable.
He argued that when net investments in silver exchange-traded products are factored in, the market reveals a deficit. He also questioned the Silver Institute’s recycling data, given the private nature of most silver recycling processes.
“I’m guessing the mining sector produced something in the order of 800, maybe 825 million ounces in 2022,” Neumeyer estimated during a Q4 2022 company overview. “Consumption numbers look like they’re somewhere between 1.2 and 1.4 billion ounces. That’s due to all the great technologies… Electric vehicles, solar panels, windmills, you name it. All these technologies require silver … that’s a pretty big (supply) deficit.” This supply deficit argument resonates strongly with the Wall Street Silver community, who often emphasize the fundamental imbalance in the silver market.
In a December 2023 Kitco interview, Neumeyer emphasized silver’s crucial role in green technologies like electric vehicles and solar cells, moving beyond its traditional perception as just “poor man’s gold.”
Reflecting its bullish view on silver, First Majestic is part of a silver producer consortium that advocated for silver to be recognized as a critical mineral by the Canadian government. This designation would provide silver producers with governmental support for project development.
In his 2024 PDAC interview, Neumeyer reiterated the significant supply-demand imbalance in the silver market. “We’re six years into this deficit. The deficit in 2024 looks like it’s gonna be bigger than 2023… because miners aren’t producing enough silver for the needs of the human race,” he stated, a point often echoed within the Wall Street Silver community.
Neumeyer also controversially suggests that silver will eventually decouple from gold and be recognized as a strategic metal due to its essential industrial applications in numerous technologies, from computers to renewable energy. He also argues that silver production has declined, making it a rarer commodity than commonly perceived. This perspective challenges the conventional view of silver’s abundance and aligns with the Wall Street Silver narrative of silver’s untapped potential.
Neumeyer’s triple-digit silver call is a long-term vision. In March 2023, he predicted gold would surpass US$3,000 that year, while silver would reach only US$30. However, he believes that such a wide gold/silver ratio sets the stage for silver to surge, requiring a catalyst.
“It could be Elon Musk taking a position in the silver space,” Neumeyer speculated. “There’s going to be a catalyst at some time, and headlines in the Wall Street Journal might talk about the silver supply deficit … I don’t know what the catalyst will be, but investors and institutions will wake up to the fundamentals of the metal, and that’s when it will start to move.”
In an August 2023 SilverNews interview, Neumeyer voiced his belief that banks are suppressing the silver market, pointing to the paper market’s capping of silver prices around US$30 despite strong buying pressure.
“If you want to go and buy 100 billion ounces of silver (in the paper market), you might not even move the price because some bank just writes you a contract,” he explained. He argued that banks take short positions, anticipating price drops to buy back silver cheaply. He suggested that if miners withdrew their metal from the system, banks would be less willing to manipulate paper markets. This critique of the paper silver market resonates deeply with the Wall Street Silver community’s skepticism towards traditional financial institutions.
Following this interview, First Majestic launched its own minting facility, First Mint, in September 2023, signaling a move towards physical silver and potentially bypassing traditional market mechanisms.
In 2024, gold saw renewed investor interest amid expectations of Fed rate cuts. However, Neumeyer, in his PDAC 2024 interview, argued that gold’s surge was driven by de-dollarization rather than interest rate concerns.
Factors Influencing Silver Prices: A Wall Street Silver Perspective
To properly evaluate the potential for silver to reach US$100, a target closely followed by Wall Street Silver investors, it’s essential to understand the factors that can propel it upwards or hold it back.
The strength of the US dollar and US Federal Reserve interest rate policies remain significant influences, alongside geopolitical events and supply-demand dynamics. Despite Neumeyer’s view that silver should decouple from gold, their price movements are often correlated, and factors affecting gold also impact silver.
Therefore, examining gold price drivers is relevant to understanding silver’s price action. Silver is known for its higher volatility compared to gold but often mirrors gold’s trends.
Regarding interest rates, higher rates generally negatively impact gold and silver, as investors shift towards interest-bearing assets. Conversely, lower rates tend to support precious metal prices.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the Fed reduced rates to near zero. However, rising inflation led to rate hikes, negatively affecting gold and silver. Starting in February 2023, the Fed began smaller rate increases, signaling a potential shift towards disinflation. These rate adjustments have significantly influenced silver prices, particularly in the recent upward cycle. Anticipations of rate cuts in 2024 have contributed to silver testing 12-year highs and exceeding US$31 in September.
Geopolitical uncertainty has also become a major price driver for precious metals. Events like US tensions with North Korea, China, and Iran, the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic impact, the Russia-Ukraine war, banking crises, and the Israel-Hamas conflict have all heightened investor concerns, driving interest in safe-haven assets like silver and gold.
Furthermore, silver’s industrial potential is a crucial factor, especially for long-term Wall Street Silver bulls. Growing industrial demand from renewable energy sectors and AI technology is expected to support silver prices in the coming years. Solar panels are particularly noteworthy, as increased silver content enhances their energy efficiency.
Chen Lin of Lin Asset Management highlighted solar panels as a “killer app” for silver, anticipating a demand surge. A Bernreuter Research report projects a substantial increase in global photovoltaic installations in 2024, further bolstering the industrial demand argument for silver.
Can Silver Realistically Reach US$100? Expert Opinions Beyond Wall Street Silver
While predicting if silver will reach US$100 soon is uncertain, there’s widespread agreement, even beyond the optimistic Wall Street Silver community, with Neumeyer’s view that silver is currently undervalued and poised for price appreciation.
Peter Krauth of Silver Stock Investor believes we are likely entering “the greatest silver bull market of our generation.”
But how high could silver realistically climb?
Historically, silver reached just under US$50 in the 1970s and approached that level again in 2011, driven by strong investment demand. While not yet revisiting those peaks, silver has seen substantial gains recently.
After trading in the teens for much of the 2010s, silver has largely remained above US$20 in the 2020s. In August 2020, it nearly hit US$28.50, and similar levels were tested in February 2021. In 2022, silver reached a high of US$26.46 in February, and surpassed US$26 again in May and November 2023.
Silver rallied in early 2024, reaching an 11-year high of US$29.26 by April 12, flirting with US$30. After a brief dip, it surged to US$32 territory in May. October 2024 saw another rally, reaching US$34.80 on October 22. However, a stronger dollar and tempered expectations for Fed rate cuts led to a price decline in November.
By February 20, 2025, silver was around US$33, up over 13 percent year-to-date, demonstrating continued upward momentum.
Despite this positive trajectory, many experts, while bullish on silver, are cautious about a US$100 target, especially given current macroeconomic conditions.
However, some, like Krauth, support the triple-digit silver thesis. In a May 2022 interview, he outlined various scenarios where silver could reach US$300, citing historical gold/silver ratios as a key factor.
In late December 2023, Krauth anticipated a silver rally in 2024, noting peaks in US Treasury yields and the US Dollar Index, suggesting a shift in Fed policy expectations. He predicted silver could approach US$30 in the second half of 2024, which it has now exceeded. At VRIC in January, Krauth made his own triple-digit call, suggesting silver could reach over US$300 by 2030.
At PDAC 2024, Krauth highlighted an emerging secondary silver supply shortfall within 18 to 24 months, which he believes will significantly impact the market.
Chen Lin of Lin Asset Management, in June 2024, considered US$50 silver achievable once the market fully recognizes the growing supply-demand gap. He pointed to reduced silver mine production due to profitability challenges amidst lower prices, contrasting with increasing industrial demand. He suggested that breaking the US$50 barrier could trigger rapid price spikes in the AI-driven trading environment, potentially paving the way for even higher prices, including US$100.
Lynette Zang, CEO of Zang Enterprises, in October 2024, predicted gold could reach US$3,000 by the end of 2024 and silver could hit US$50, citing central banks preparing for hyperinflation.
InvestingHaven is highly bullish on silver, forecasting all-time highs in 2025 and potentially reaching US$77 by 2027 and US$82 by 2030.
FAQs on Silver for Wall Street Silver Investors and Beyond
Can silver hit $1,000 per ounce?
Neumeyer’s 2016 prediction of $1,000 silver hinged on gold reaching US$10,000, based on the gold-to-silver production ratio. While this ratio currently suggests a higher silver price than the market reflects, gold would need to more than quadruple from current levels for silver to reach $1,000 based on this theory. Currently, this scenario seems highly improbable.
Why is silver so cheap compared to gold?
Silver’s lower price compared to gold is primarily due to supply and demand. Significantly more silver is mined annually. While both have investment and industrial demand, gold’s role as a primary investment vehicle, including central bank reserves and high jewelry demand, overshadows silver. The earth’s crust also contains significantly more silver than gold.
Is silver really undervalued?
Many experts, including those followed by Wall Street Silver, believe silver is undervalued below US$30, especially relative to gold. The production and price ratios are highly disparate. Silver’s increasing investment appeal and growing industrial applications in technology and renewable energy contribute to this undervaluation argument. Record silver demand in 2022, driven by both investment and industrial sectors, further supports this view.
Is silver a better investment than gold?
Both silver and gold have merits in a diversified portfolio. Silver historically outperforms gold during economic expansions, while gold is often favored during economic uncertainty. Silver’s dual nature as both a precious and industrial metal offers unique price support and potential upside, particularly in bull markets for precious metals.
What price did Warren Buffett buy silver at?
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway accumulated a massive silver position between 1997 and 2006, buying 37 percent of global silver supply at the time. Silver prices ranged from US$4 to US$10 during this period. Between July 1997 and January 1998 alone, they purchased 129 million ounces, often for under US$5, which, adjusted for inflation, equates to roughly US$8.50 to US$11.50 in today’s dollars.
How can investors participate in the silver market?
Investors have various avenues to invest in silver, catering to different risk appetites and investment styles. Options include investing in silver mining stocks, silver ETFs for broad market exposure, silver futures for experienced traders, and physical silver bullion (bars and coins) for tangible asset ownership. Diversification across these methods can be a prudent approach.
This is an updated version of an article originally published by the Investing News Network in 2016.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.
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