Silver Market Balance: A 2026 Update

From Mining Visuals

For the fifth year running, the world used more silver than it produced in 2025, and the World Silver Survey 2026 expects 2026 to extend that streak to six. The report, released in April by the Silver Institute and researched by the London consultancy Metals Focus, pegs the 2025 deficit at 40.3 million ounces and forecasts a wider gap of 46.3 million ounces this year. Each shortfall draws on above-ground stocks, leaving less metal readily available even as total inventories have held up. The survey attributes last year’s record-breaking price run to a mix of that tight physical supply, strong investment demand, and a supportive macro backdrop. With silver now trading well off its January high, the question for 2026 is whether that tightness holds.