Here Is Who Controls the World’s Silver Supply
Silver’s explosive move in 2025 has forced investors to look beyond price charts and into the ground itself. After climbing roughly 150% over the year and briefly pushing toward the $80 level in December, silver entered a phase where supply concentration matters just as much as demand momentum.
The rally unfolded amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty, persistent currency weakness, and renewed interest in hard assets. While gold also moved higher, silver clearly outperformed, reinforcing its role as both a monetary and industrial metal with amplified upside during late-cycle moves.
- Silver surged around 150% in 2025, pushing prices near $80 and shifting attention toward supply limits.
- Global silver reserves are highly concentrated, with Peru alone holding about 22% of the world total.
- Production leaders like Mexico control far fewer reserves, raising questions about long-term supply resilience.
A Global Reserve Base That Is Far From Even
Global silver reserves are estimated at around 641,400 metric tons, based on data compiled by U.S. Geological Survey and visualized by Visual Capitalist. What stands out immediately is how unevenly those reserves are distributed across regions.
Rather than being spread evenly, the bulk of known silver sits in a relatively small number of countries, creating natural bottlenecks if supply conditions tighten further.
Peru’s Outsized Role in the Silver Market
Peru holds a uniquely dominant position in global silver reserves. With approximately 140,000 metric tons, the country alone accounts for nearly 22% of the world’s known supply. This gives Peru a level of strategic importance that is often overlooked during periods when market focus is fixed on price action alone.
As prices rise and new projects become more economically viable, reserve-rich countries like Peru may increasingly influence the pace at which additional supply can realistically come online.
The Second Tier: Australia, Russia, and China
Behind Peru sits a powerful second tier of reserve-heavy nations. Australia, Russia, and China each hold between 70,000 and 94,000 metric tons of silver reserves, together accounting for roughly 40% of the global total.
This group forms the structural backbone of long-term silver availability, even though their mining strategies, domestic demand profiles, and export policies differ significantly.
Production Leadership Does Not Always Match Reserve Depth
Mexico highlights a key imbalance within the silver market. Despite leading global silver production, the country holds only about 37,000 metric tons of reserves, representing roughly 6% of the world total.
This gap suggests Mexico’s dominance is driven more by sustained extraction than deep reserve buffers, potentially making future supply more sensitive to costs, pricing cycles, and exploration success.
Smaller Holders Still Matter
Several other countries hold smaller but still meaningful shares of global silver reserves. Poland stands out in Europe with more than 60,000 metric tons, while the United States, Canada, Chile, Bolivia, and India each contribute to global supply diversity.
Taken together, these countries help stabilize the market, even if none individually possess the leverage seen among the largest reserve holders.
Why Reserve Concentration Matters After a Historic Rally
South America controls close to 30% of the world’s known silver reserves, adding a regional dimension to silver’s long-term outlook. After one of the strongest annual rallies in the metal’s history, reserve concentration is becoming a more central theme in supply discussions.
As silver moves into 2026, the focus is shifting from how far prices have already climbed to how resilient supply can be if demand remains elevated. With reserves concentrated in a handful of regions and production leadership not always aligned with reserve depth, the next phase of the silver market may depend as much on geology as on macroeconomic forces.
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Alexander Zdravkov is a person who always looks for the logic behind things. He has more than 3 years of experience in the crypto space, where he skillfully identifies new trends in the world of digital currencies. Whether providing in-depth analysis or daily reports on all topics, his deep understanding and enthusiasm for what he does make him a valuable member of the team.
