Wojciech Slowinski @TrendingStocks: "November brought further gains for..."

Poland

November brought further gains for my portfolio, which so this year finished all months in profit apart from a 0.06% loss in February. My portfolio gained 2.75% in November and as such recorder much better performance than underlying markets, as the $SPY (State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF) rose by 0.19% in November and the global $ACWI (iShares MSCI ACWI Index Fund) by 0.04%. Year-to-date (YTD), my portfolio is up 28.2% vs $SPY gain of 17.0% and $ACWI gain of 20.7%. The good result of the portfolio last month was achieved in largest part to further gains recorded by precious metals $GLD (SPDR Gold) (+5.4% in November) and $SLV (iShares Silver Trust) (+30.1% in November). I used the spectacular gain of $SILVER in November to take some profits but I continue to hold most of my positions in both precious metals. Unlike $GOLD, silver plays a dual role as both a monetary asset and an industrial input, which has contributed to persistent supply shortfalls as demand from technology, healthcare, and renewable energy outpaces mine production. However, fundamentals alone do not fully explain the recent surge. It appears that at least part of the explanation lies in silver’s smaller and less liquid market that makes it more vulnerable to short-term squeezes, exacerbated recently by tariff speculation and unusual physical flows. Over the medium term though, the rally like in gold appears linked to broader concerns about inflation, rising public debt, political risk, and confidence in fiat currencies. Expectations of looser US monetary policy have further boosted demand, with silver acting as a higher-volatility alternative to gold. While a correction is possible, conditions do not yet appear convincing to me to sell larger parts of my precious metals holdings.