Barry Stuppler

I just returned from the Florida United Numismatic (FUN) coin convention in Orlando. The activity level was as high as any rare coin convention that I have seen for the past 20 years. Prices in the auction for Gold and Silver rarities (valued over $50,000) were running at approximately 20-25% higher than last year. The prices realized for U.S. coins at public auctions this past year totaled nearly $393 million, the highest aggregate total anyone can recall. It is estimated that the overall rare coin market in the U.S. was at about . . . .

As bullish as I am on the price of gold, I am far more bullish on silver. Silver is the poor man’s gold. It has a richer history of functioning as money because it was more practical to use silver than gold for day-to-day purchases. It was a part of America’s monetary system throughout most of our nation’s history, and it has only been 50 years since the government decided to remove silver from quarters and dimes.

While silver may never be used as money again, I think every investor should hold some silver in his or her portfolio. Like gold, it is a store of value, an inflation hedge, and a hedge against economic chaos. But I think silver offers a better opportunity, and here are seven reasons why . . . .

Many shops selling gold in Beijing are catering to a steady stream of customers interested in buying the precious metal after gold prices started decreasing.

International gold prices were at US$1,696 per ounce at the beginning of 2013, but have fallen by 28% to less than US$1,200 on Dec 31, 2013, the largest drop since 1981 . . . .