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 SILVER Faq's |
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How Can Investors Profit?
Obviously, there are any number of ways to get into a silver boom, but right now, silver mining companies seem poised for a breakout. Aggressive investors tend to seek out silver mining companies because the stock price is highly leveraged to the price of silver. |
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How Does Silver Stack Up to Gold?
While the vast majority of investors are aware of gold's strength over the past couple of years, few know that while gold has tripled in price since 2001, silver has done even better. In fact, it has a five-year gain of 123%. Better still, if both silver and gold perform as some expect, and reach new all-time highs, silver has much higher to climb.
Gold is at about $1,100 an ounce. It has eclipsed its record high of $850 in January 1980 and keeps pushing higher. But silver is just one-fifth of the way toward its record level. Trading at about $18.00 an ounce, silver would need to spike up to $49.50 an ounce before hitting that number.”
And there's every reason to think that the precious metal will make at least part of the voyage. |
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To be sure, the giant leap forward in silver and gold prices is due to speculation. In fact, there's been a 400% increase in the net investment in silver, thanks in large measure to hedge fund activity and commodity trading on the futures exchanges, according to Michael Checkan, president of Asset Strategies International in Rockville, Md., a commodities broker.
But the popularity of silver has escalated for other fundamental reasons that could make the cost a very attractive buy for investors. |
| While Historical Demand Declines, New Innovations Ratchet Up the Need Elsewhere… |
Recently, three of the largest areas of demand for silver have shown significant decline. Better technology has increased the efficiency in creating jewelry and silverware, thereby reducing demand by almost 10%. Likewise, the advent of digital photography has resulted in a sharp decline for the traditional use of silver in photography.
It's therefore somewhat surprising to learn that the overall need for silver has increased - up 5% this year alone in industrial demand. Specifically, in the electronics sector, the demand is up 14%, while the coin and medal fabrication business has pushed demand up 15%. Even more surprising, the same digital technology that's cutting into silver's utility in one aspect of photography is also responsible for an increase in silver demand in another part of the equation - the creation of the components of digital cameras.
Supply is Dwindling
On the other side of the silver economics equation, the supply side, we see a significant drop. Basic economics will tell you that hot demand and a shrinking supply gets you… higher prices - regardless of whether this is at the pump for gas or through your utility lines for power. Specifically, the supply of recoverable silver (or silver reclaimed from recycled end products) is declining, thus not meeting demand.
Claiming the dubious title of leader in declining silver reclamation is China - down a whopping 30% from the previous year. Worse, last summer the Chinese government announced that it had depleted its stocks of silver. What does this mean on a world-use scale? Well, it means that the Chinese will be in competition with the United States (eighth on the supply production list) for silver.
The bottom line is this: Supply-demand equation screams investment opportunities in silver mining.
It's all about the Commodities
So you've got greater demand for the stuff and dwindling supplies. What more could any investor want?
How about global, political instability? As the world continues down a multitude of paths toward greater chaos, the role of precious metals as a measure of currency stability grows. Here's just a sampling of that instability…
- Iran, the world's second largest oil and gas producer, is becoming more and more bellicose in its position regarding its right to enrich uranium. Should its demands not be met, Iran is threatening to cut its energy production drastically.
- Iraq is unstable, to say the least.
- Hamas is running the Palestinian Territories.
- Present-day world conflicts and economic questions mark factors in as well, such as…
- At home, terrorism and Bird Flu have become a permanent preoccupation for the worrying classes.
The last time this country, and the world at large, experienced similar economic and political uncertainty, the cold war and all of its consequences were in full effect. The Soviet Union was still unified, and American athletes were canceling their reservations to the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. President Jimmy Carter presided over political uncertainty, manned the helm as oil prices skyrocketed and the Consumer Price Index that surged 13% in one year.
True, historical parallels are inexact, but many of the same conditions that existed the last time silver exploded are in effect today. Those, along with the general sense of anxiety, are fueling precious metal rises. So it doesn't take a very big leap in faith to see that silver (and gold) could very well be on its long march toward history.
What is silver used for today?
The many properties of silver mean that it is widely used today in science and technology. Each year over 7,000 new patents and papers are published which describe a product or process in which silver is a vital part.
Silver has a range of specialized electrical, mechanical, optical and medicinal properties. Silver is used in solar panels and spacecraft, plumbing and pendants. It has not been an easy metal to replace as new technology reveals additional applications.
Technology - The photographic industry takes 35% of the silver used each year throughout the world. Silver halides, coupled with dyes produce color photographic images. X-Ray and black & white photography also rely on silver.
Watches, cameras and calculators use silver in their batteries to provide higher voltage and longer life. Silver oxide-zinc batteries, which have twice the electrical capacity of lead-acid batteries of the same size, are used extensively in aircraft and submarines, where weight is critical.
Silver concentrates the sun’s rays on solar collectors; it is found on the backs of mirrors and protects the heat-reflecting gold film on windows. Under the keys of almost every personal computer is a panel of switches with silver contacts to carry out the countless millions of instructions. Silver thiosulphate prevents the release of ethylene gas from cut flowers to produce longer lasting blooms destined for export. Silver can be prepared as crystals of silver iodine and seeded into cold cloud to produce raindrops or snowflakes. |
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| Above: Silver is used in x ray, as well as color and black and white films. |
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| Above: Silver is used in watch batteries. |
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Around the home - Water filters used to purify swimming pool and drinking water use silver to prevent the build-up of bacteria and algae.
Microwave cooking is made more appetizing due to a silver alloy coating applied to the bottom of microwave cookware. The surface of the cookware will reach 260 degrees C in five minutes, resulting in a browning or crisping of food surfaces.
We use the term 'silverware' to indicate the best cutlery. Many of the best table accessories such as knives, forks and spoons; jugs, serving dishes and trays are made out of silver. |
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| Silver sulphadiazine-based burn creams are a life saver for burn victims. The burn cream is antiseptic and does not retard the growth of cells. |
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Arthritis pills showing their silver coating.
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Medicine - Silver—and gold—are used in the treatment of arthritis where gold can be injected into muscles, and silver is used to coat arthritis pills.
Burns are disinfected with silver creams and bones are mended with cement containing antibacterial silver salts. Silver is combined with the powerful chemotherapeutic agent sulphadiazine to produce a drug 50 times more powerful than sulphadiazine alone. It is the most widely used drug for treating burn wounds.
Silver is also widely used in dentistry. Silver nitrate can be administered to new-born infants’ eyes to eliminate the incidence of Gonococcal Ophthalmia, a disease which can cause blindness. |
History
Silver was discovered after gold and copper about 4000 BC, when it was used in jewelry and as a medium of exchange. The earliest known workings of significant size were those of the pre-Hittites of Cappadocia in eastern Anatolia. Silver is generally found in the combined state in nature, usually in copper or lead mineralization, and by 2000 BC mining and smelting of silver-bearing lead ores was under way. Lead ores were smelted to obtain an impure lead-silver alloy, which was then fire refined by cupellation. The best-known of the ancient mines were located at the Laurium silver-lead deposit in Greece; this was actively mined from 500 BC to AD 100. Spanish mines were also a major source.
By the 16th century, Spanish conquistadores had discovered and developed silver mines in Mexico, Bolivia, and Peru. These New World mines, much richer in silver, resulted in the rise of South and Central America as the largest silver-producing areas in the world. For the recovery of New World silver, the Patio process was employed. Silver-bearing ore was ground and then mixed with salt, roasted copper ore, and mercury. The mixing was accomplished by tethering mules to a central post on a paved patio (hence the name of the process) and compelling them to walk in a circle through the mixture. The silver was gradually converted to the elemental state in a very finely divided form, from which it was dissolved by the mercury. Periodically, the mercury was collected and distilled to recover the silver, and this was subsequently refined by cupellation. Cyanidation processes supplanted the Patio process in the late 19th century; by that time, the Moebius and Thum Balbach electrorefining processes had been introduced.
In the mid-19th century a large silver deposit was discovered in Nevada. This resulted in the United States becoming the world's largest silver producer until the 20th century, when it was surpassed by Mexico and South America (particularly Peru).
Mining and Concentrating
Silver-bearing ores are mined by open-pit or underground methods and then are crushed and ground. Since virtually all the ores are sulfides, they are amenable to flotation separation, by which a 30- to 40-fold concentration of mineral values is usually achieved. Of the three major types of mineralization, lead concentrates contain the most silver and zinc concentrates the least.
Extraction and Refining
The specific extractive metallurgy processes applied to a silver-bearing mineral concentrate depend on whether the major metal is copper, zinc, or lead.
From copper concentrates
The smelting and converting of copper sulfide concentrates result in a "blister" copper that contains 97 to 99 percent of the silver present in the original concentrate. Upon electrolytic refining of the copper, insoluble impurities, called slimes, gradually accumulate at the bottom of the refining tank. These contain the silver originally present in the concentrate but at a much higher concentration; for example, a silver content of 0.2 percent in the sulfide concentrate can result in a slime containing 20 percent silver. This is smelted in a small furnace to oxidize virtually all metals present except silver, gold, and platinum-group metals. The metal recovered, called doré, generally contains 0.5 to 5 percent gold, 0.1 to 1 percent platinum metals, and the balance silver. This metal is cast to form anodes and electrolyzed in a solution of silver-copper nitrate. Two different electrorefining techniques are employed, the Moebius and Thum Balbach systems. The chief difference between them is that the electrodes are disposed vertically in the Moebius system and horizontally in the Thum Balbach system. The silver obtained by electrolysis usually has a purity of three-nines fine; on occasion it may be four-nines fine, or 99.99 percent silver.
From lead concentrates
Lead concentrates are first roasted and then smelted to produce a lead bullion from which impurities such as antimony, arsenic, tin, and silver must be removed. Silver is removed by the Parkes process, which consists of adding zinc to the molten lead bullion. Zinc reacts rapidly and completely with gold and silver, forming very insoluble compounds that float to the top of the bullion. These are skimmed off and their zinc content recovered by vacuum retorting. The remaining lead-gold-silver residue is treated by cupellation, a process in which the residue is heated to a high temperature (about 800º C, or 1,450º F) under strongly oxidizing conditions. The noble silver and gold remain in the elemental form, while the lead oxidizes and is removed. The gold and silver alloy thus produced is refined by the Moebius or Thum Balbach process. The residue from silver refining is treated by affination or parting to concentrate the gold content, which is refined by the Wohlwill process.
Assaying
The fire assaying techniques described above for gold are equally applicable to silver. In order to determine the silver content of a fire assay bead, the bead is first weighed, then boiled with 35-percent-strength nitric acid to dissolve its silver content, and then weighed again. The weight loss defines the silver content, and the remaining residue contains the gold. In order to ensure complete dissolution of the silver, the silver content of the bead should be at least 60-70 percent. A process routinely employed in the fire assaying of gold ores is the addition of silver prior to fusion of the ore in order to ensure that the silver content of the final bead is high enough to dissolve. This is called inquartation, and the separating of silver and gold by leaching with nitric acid is referred to as parting.
Silver: The metal and its alloys
Even silver that has been fully work-hardened, either by rolling or forging, gradually recrystallizes, even at room temperature. This greatly softens the metal, making it susceptible to scratching and marring. To maintain hardness, therefore, other metals are added to form alloys that are harder, stronger, and less prone to fatigue.
The best-known copper-silver alloy is sterling, which is 92.5 percent silver and 7.5 percent copper. (In England sterling silver is traditionally identified by the hallmark of a lion passant.) Coin silver is an alloy of 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper. For jewelry and ornaments, 85-90 percent silver (and the balance copper) is frequently used. Dental alloys of 60-70 percent silver, 18-25 percent tin, 2-14 percent copper, and 0.5-2 percent zinc are amalgamated with varying quantities of mercury to form the filling materials for cavities in teeth.
Silver and alloys of silver and copper, although stable in air, tarnish in the presence of sulfur. In order to improve tarnish resistance, up to 40 percent palladium is added. In order to obtain the lustre and corrosion resistance of silver on other metals and alloys, silver electroplating is practiced. Cyanide-based baths are most commonly employed.
Because silver has the highest electrical conductivity of all metals, it is used in alloyed form for electrical contacts. Palladium and nickel improve the metal's chemical resistance to oxidation and sulfidation as well as its resistance to corrosion.
Silver brazing fillers are the most frequently used precious-metal fillers. They are suitable for brazing nearly all steels and nonferrous metals except aluminum, magnesium, and titanium. A typical brazing alloy composition is 50 percent silver, 34 percent copper, and 16 percent zinc.
Chemical compounds
Between 25 and 40 percent of industrial silver is consumed in the production of the photosensitive chemicals silver chloride and silver bromide. These silver salts are prepared by adding sodium chloride or sodium bromide to a very pure solution of silver nitrate. The highly insoluble silver chloride or silver bromide then precipitates from solution. All processing takes place in the absence of any light.
Silver oxides (both Ag2O and AgO) serve as the cathodic materials in silver-zinc primary and secondary (i.e., rechargeable) batteries. The high energy density of the primary batteries (as measured by available electrical energy per unit weight) is responsible for their employment as miniature power cells for cameras and timepieces.
What is silver?
Silver is a ductile, malleable, brilliant greyish-white metal. Atomic number: 47 Atomic weight: 107.9 Melting point: 960.5 degrees C Specific gravity: 10.5 when pure Hardness: 2.5 – 3.
The chemical symbol for silver is Ag, meaning 'argentum' - an ancient or poetic word for silver. The term 'sterling' for English currency denotes a specific weight of silver. When we say something is 'sterling' we mean 'excellent'.
The price of silver and other precious metals is quoted in terms of troy ounces. The term 'troy' is derived from Troyes, France, a major trading city of the Middle Ages. One troy ounce equals 31.1 grams.
What are the properties of silver?
Silver has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal. It is malleable (easily shaped), ductile (can be drawn into very thin wire) and has antiseptic properties.
What has silver been used for in the past?
Silver has had many practical and artistic uses. Because it was found as a free metal and was easy to work it was put to a variety of uses. The early discovery that water, wine, milk and vinegar stayed pure longer in silver vessels, led to its use as a container for long voyages on land and sea over 2,500 years ago.
Silver Facts:
Silver reflects. The film coating on mirror backings is silver. Mirrors are used in telescopes, microscopes, spacecraft and solar panels, as well as bathrooms! Don't forget the silver transparent coating on double-pane thermal windows.
Silver conducts heat. Those silver ceramic lines fired into your car's rear window keep the window clear of frost and ice.
Silver conducts electricity. Silver is the metal of choice for switch contacts because it does not corrode. Every time you start your microwave, dishwasher, television set, car engine, etc., silver contacts complete the electrical circuit. The same thing happens when you tap the keys of your computer keyboard, adjust your car's power seats, or release the power trunk lock. Silver is there.
Silver kills bacteria. Silver chemically affects the cell membranes of bacteria, causing them to break down. Bacteria do not develop resistance to silver, as they do to many antibiotics. Silver solutions are used in burn treatments. Silver gauze packs the wounds of patients during transport to medical facilities. Silver nitrate drops are used to clean the eyes of newborns. Hikers use portable silver-based water purification systems for drinking water.
Silver rings. Silver has a pure acoustic resonance and is preferred by musicians for making high quality silver bells and musical instruments.
Silver captures images. Silver salts are the basic image capture and forming materials in photography. Every picture of your sweet little darling contains silver, as well as medical/dental x-rays and your favorite movie.
Silver is pretty. Don't forget the silver in your jewelry or traditional tableware. It's a favorite medium because it is soft and malleable, and can be shaped into any form. Silver has been used in cherished heirlooms and gifts for centuries.
Western American Mining has targeted Silver mining interests for its prospecting and acquisition strategy. |
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Gold: The Inside Scoop
How can investors of Gold get the Best Bang for the Buck? – Developmental Companies
Companies developing mines should experience strong share price increases as they approach production even with lower metal prices. Gold is approximately $600 an ounce. Many companies use $325-350 as a guide to take a mine into production profitably. Gold at $425-450 would make these mines extremely profitable and $500 gold and above hugely profitable. Therefore investments in developing mining companies usually have solid 1-2 year upside potential even if metal prices decline. One has to have patience with these future producers, but the upside is usually worth the wait.
What Is Driving The Price Of Gold?
The fundamentals for higher gold prices are tied to basic economic scenarios. Strong economic growth increases jewelry demand and the past robust housing market increased commodity demand in general which helped gold. Currently the global economy is doing better than expected and will for the time being help the mining industry and gold consumption. But the housing market slowing down in the U.S. and consumers being overextended and cutting back on their buying habits will slow down the economy. A severe recession is also possible because of the high debt levels in this economic cycle. A slow down in the U.S. slows down a percentage of the world’s economy. Therefore oil demand, commodity demand and even jewelry demand will suffer to varying degrees.
But there are four points that are not in the above equation:
1) Any slow down should be accompanied by inflation. Recessions with inflation in the past (1974, 1980) saw gold hit the highest levels in history! Consider these facts: a) huge long term global money supply increases, b) commodity prices 200% higher than just four years ago, c) intermediate and crude goods inflation in the U.S., according to The Department of Labor has averaged 10.2% annually in the last two and half years. This will soon show up in producer prices and consumer prices. This leads to only one conclusion. It is only a matter of time before consumer prices start to increase sharply. Inflation is already baked into the cake and all the jawboning by politicians and economists and financial journalists will not change these facts and the past inflationary effects they have always had, including higher gold prices.
2) Increased gold demand based on new middle class buyers is global. Slow downs in China from 10% growth to 2% will not stop this trend.
3) Money supply increases for six important countries in the last year allow one to envision even more gold and silver demand: China +15%, India +20.3%, U.K. +10.8%, Russia +42.5%, France +7.5% Brazil +16.8%. These are printing presses out of control and many of these citizens will be gold and silver buyers to protect against this currency depreciation.
4) The dollar is also vulnerable. We just experienced the largest quarterly trade deficit in history and sooner or later the Chinese and Japanese central banks will have to sell and stop buying U.S. Treasuries which finance our budget deficits. If foreigners do not buy our debt with their money then the Federal Reserve would be forced to buy. When the Fed buys Treasuries it creates new money. More money issued depreciates the dollar. With inflation already in the mix, a slowing U.S. economy, and international money flows out of the U.S., the dollar is vulnerable. This is bullish for gold.
The powers that be, if faced with inflation, would have to no choice regarding interest rates as rates must go up with inflation. Rates at very high levels would bring on a severe stock and bond market retrenchment. This is what happened in 1974 and 1981. The Fed would then once again have to come to the rescue. This would mean printing as much money as is needed to make the nightmare end. We would then go through the next economic cycle but gold would stay at a much higher range for that cycle.
How Are Oil and Gold Related?
Oil pulling back affected the gold market. Linking the price of oil and gold is half correct because one is energy and the other is money but both are also commodities so the linking does have some truth to it. For those looking at this relationship from a commodity standpoint, I give the following stats from the respected Energy Information Agency (EIA). The U.S. consumes 3 gallons of oil per day per person. China consumes .2 gallons per day per person. This is 15 times less per person in a country with 4 times the population. Doing the math shows a staggering 60x long-term demand ratio that may take decades but is now underway as China’s economy advances toward becoming like the U.S. This ratio will also apply to many other commodities in the years ahead.
Is There Real Value versus Market Value?
Mining stocks are notorious for fluctuating far out of the price range of what a reasonable value should be. Because of this, investors have a difficult time making correct investment decisions. The correct valuation method is to take the estimated resource and figure out only how many ounces or pounds of minerals or metals will be able to be recovered. Next, apply a conservative future price to these metals and then estimate how much capital and how much mining cost will be needed to dig the metals out of the ground, crush and grind the rock and then process the crushed rock or powder and then extract the metal. You have to figure how much debt and how many millions of new shares must be sold to finance this whole procedure. After all this you will be left with a multi – year future cash flow from the project. Discount this future value back to present time and then you will have a good idea of what the projects(s) or company is worth.
A reasonable value can be estimated for many companies. Also future upside can come from higher metal values and future discoveries and additions to their reserve base. On the downside is lower metal prices, permitting and engineering problems and political (country) risk. But if you are already using $375 to $425 gold as a future price to determine future profits and you come up with a stock that should be valued at $15 (at $400 gold in the future) and the stock is trading at $5, then you probably have a winner. The ideal company shows that recoverable value in the ground will eventually translate into value in the market even if gold trades well under $600 in the future. In these types of analyses, a lower gold price in the end will not even matter. Gold going down to $400 is a non factor to an undervalued project that will make plenty of money at the $400 gold in the future. Even a crash in the gold price for non producing developmental companies can be offset by substantial profits from the business of mining the metal. This does not apply to producers. Producers will be affected by the current gold price. That is why when owning producers try and own some with future projects in the pipeline.
The mining sector is not alone in these illogical pricings by the stock market. Northern Trust a major financial institution with over $620 billion under management had this to say about net asset values in real estate and various closed end mutual funds.
“As with closed-end funds, it is one of the enduring mysteries of academic finance how REIT share prices can be so volatile and can pull so far away from their net asset value (NAV) when this value is firmly grounded in hard assets”
Gold stock investors can certainly relate to the above. Therefore don’t despair when your stocks are being sold off by uninformed or scared or fast buck traders and investors. If you know for sure that the company already has found the minerals and the engineering studies by the company or an outside company are positive, then you should be able to know what the company will be worth in a few years. That number should be more valid than the short term market value.
Your success in investing in companies is making sure the cash flow from all the hype and hoopla in the future years will support a higher share value. 10 million ounces in the ground is meaningless if it is too low grade or too expensive to mine. A company that will have to sell a lot of stock and dilute the value of existing shareholders if it is overpriced already, has no where to go but down even as they become a successful mining company. If they are already overpriced you better know it.
Mining insiders and people that study the engineering reports and can make the many calculations that are necessary to figure all this out are the ones most likely selling when you are buying or buying when you are selling.
The key to this business is to find companies that have already found the goods in the ground and are developing quality and large projects. I am always comfortable with a three year time frame to production and at least a 3x return using much lower metal prices and a reasonable multiple of cash flow. Even if a lot goes wrong - and it usually does there is plenty of room for capital gains.
According to Ken Gerbino who heads Kenneth J. Gerbino & Company, which is in its 30th year. The company manages portfolios for individuals, pensions, trusts and corporations. The company manages private equity accounts as well as the Gerbino Gold Group, LLC, a private fund that invests in precious metal mining stocks. Ken is also the precious metal mining consultant to $2 billion ICM Capital Management.
All About Gold
Gold is a rare metal. It has the chemical symbol Au, named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of the dawn. The purity of gold is described by its 'fineness' in parts per 1,000 or by the carat scale which is parts per 24. The word 'carat' derives from the Italian carato, Arabic qirat or Greek keration, all meaning the fruit of the carob tree. Ancient traders used carob seeds as the means to balance the scales in oriental bazaars. Pure gold is 24 carat or 1,000 fine.
The price of gold and other precious metals is quoted in terms of troy ounces. The term 'troy' is derived from Troyes, France, a major trading city of the Middle Ages. One troy ounce equals 31.1 grams.
What are the properties of gold?
Pure gold is soft and wears easily. It is often mixed with other harder metals. A mixture of metals is called an alloy. Gold is very unreactive. This means it is resistant to corrosion and tarnishing. That is why a gold nugget can be buried in the ground for thousands of years and still come up looking shiny.
Gold is malleable (easily shaped) and ductile (can be drawn into very thin wire). A square lump of gold about the size of your thumb nail would weigh an ounce. That ounce of gold can be flattened into a sheet so thin that it would be thinner than a piece of refill paper, and light could pass through it. It would cover an area about the size of a small bedroom. The same lump of gold can be drawn into a piece of wire 80 km long. That's long enough to go around a rugby field 23 times.
Where is gold found? Gold is found as a free metal in nature. It can be found as nuggets or bound up with rock and too small to see with the naked eye. It is sometimes found in association with other metals.
What has gold been used for in the past? Decoration - Gold has been used for ornaments and decoration and as money for over 5,000 years. Gold leaf has been used for the decoration of tombs and statues, cathedrals and temples, fine books, and picture frames since Egyptian times. Many Egyptian burial cases, including King Tutankhamun's (1352 BC), were overlaid with beaten gold (called gilding). Gold leaf is still often preferred for adorning the domes or ceilings of buildings (such as the Metropolitan Opera House in New York) because its resistance to corrosion means that it will outlast paint by many years.
Gold was made into jewellery long before it was used as currency. The earliest gold jewellery dates from the Sumeric civilization around 3,000BC. The jewellery was worn by both men and women. Goldsmith’s skills that were understood and mastered at that time are still used today, although some of the techniques have been lost. Gold wedding rings, used in marriage ceremonies since the 9th century, date back to the ancient Egyptians. The ring is placed on the third finger of the left hand because it was believed that this finger carried an artery leading directly to the heart. |
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