Speaking of the precious metals market in 2025, silver, the "industrial hard currency," has completely taken the spotlight. From the beginning of the year when it was around $29-30 per ounce, it soared to about $74-75 by the end of the year (the spot price on December 30 was approximately $74.87, after reaching over $80 at its peak and then pulling back), with an annual increase of over 158%-160%, marking the best annual performance since 1979. In December alone, it surged nearly 30%, repeatedly hitting new all-time highs.

In comparison, gold's 70% increase this year is also impressive, but it was clearly outperformed by silver, the "little brother." What is the reason behind this? Industrial leverage.

Why is silver so crazy:

First is the supply-side pressure. Five consecutive years of supply deficits have driven inventories to historic lows, setting the stage for price increases. Second is the explosion in industrial demand—photovoltaic industry, electric vehicle manufacturing, AI chip production—all these emerging industries rely heavily on silver, with industrial demand even consuming more than half of the total silver demand. Coupled with risk aversion and speculative factors: a rate-cutting cycle, geopolitical instability, a weakening dollar—all have driven funds into precious metal ETFs and derivatives, causing silver, dubbed "poor man's gold," to catch up rapidly. Additional speculative factors such as tariff expectations and market rushes have further fueled the rally.

Looking at the asset performance for the year, the ranking is clear: silver leads the commodities with over 150% gains, followed by gold at 70% but clearly losing favor. The stock market and Bitcoin showed volatile but overall moderate or even declining performance, while energy assets remained relatively sluggish. Silver's market capitalization has already reached the 4.5 trillion yuan level, which is quite impressive in the commodities market.

But opportunities always come with risks. Silver's price volatility is high, and the recent sharp correction is a clear example. There is indeed a short-term risk of a flash crash, but from a medium- to long-term perspective, the supply and demand fundamentals remain tight. If you plan to participate through ETFs, futures, or mining stocks, remember to be cautious—leverage blow-ups are no joke.

The story of 2025 is simple: silver is the crazy comeback kid, while traditional safe-haven gold appears relatively dull. What will happen in 2026? Whether silver's industrial demand can sustain high levels is something worth continuing to watch.