Precious Metals: The 2025 Boom in Three Charts
One of the main characteristics of financial markets in 2025 is undoubtedly the strong rise in precious metal prices. Not only gold, but also silver and other noble metals have delivered performance far exceeding that of equities. Let’s look at some comparisons.
Since the beginning of 2025, the precious metals basket has recorded a performance of over 60% compared to a +12% gain for the S&P 500. This result is driven by several factors, which can be summarized as follows:
- More accommodative monetary policies by the U.S. Federal Reserve, with interest rate cuts reducing the opportunity cost of holding gold and other non-productive metals.
- Geopolitical tensions in various regions, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, tensions in the Middle East, and episodic crises, which keep demand for safe-haven assets high.
- A structural market deficit, particularly for silver, with growing demand and limited supply pushing prices up by as much as 20% over the year.
- An increase in speculative positions and “short squeeze” phenomena, amplifying short-term price gains.
Above, the chart shows the relative strength of the precious metals basket versus the S&P 500. As noted, the current strength level of precious metals is similar to that reached in April, just after the famous “Liberation Day” associated with Trump. Overall, the trend has been bullish since the beginning of the year.
Precious metals are driving the commodities sector. As seen in the chart above, the relative strength of precious metals against the broader commodities basket has surged since late September. This signals the increasingly “non-industrial” nature of demand for precious metals.
As mentioned, it’s not only gold that has delivered “stellar” performance in 2025. A striking example is silver. The chart above shows the relative strength of silver versus gold, indicating that the “gray metal” began gaining on the bullion starting last April, with a notable upward shift in its long-term moving average.
