Outlook for Platinum Bullion: A Solid, Long-Term Investment

Many of our blog posts center on gold and silver. Indeed, they tend to be the most popular (and readily available) precious metals on the market.

But we don’t want you to think we only have eyes for silver and gold.

Quite the contrary.

In fact, as experienced investors increasingly turn to platinum to diversify their holdings, Provident Metals has been broadening its selection of platinum bullion products.

And platinum has had some great days as of late.

Since July, platinum has climbed over $200 per ounce, its highest level since February. On the day this was written, the precious metal stood at $1665 per ounce.

Thanks to a whole host of factors, analysts expect platinum to reach $2000 per ounce by 2015.

So what’s contributing to the latest bullish forecast?

1.    Tightening Supply and Deficits

It is expected that the platinum market will fall into a deficit next year and stay that way – at least in the short and mid-term.

One reason is that over 93% of the world’s platinum comes from one of three places: South Africa, Russia and Zimbabwe. Each of these regions has its own problems, hampering production. Between labor unrest in South Africa, environmental concerns in Russia and nationalization in Zimbabwe, supply problems are inevitable, especially when significant supply comes from so few places.

Mineral surveys reveal Canada has quite a bit of platinum tucked inside the earth’s crust – the fourth largest deposits in the world. Though new mines are in the works, it will take years for Canadian platinum to hit online stores.

2.    Rising Demand for Catalytic Converters

Demand for platinum intended for catalytic converters has recovered since its 2011 recession lows. It is expected the demand will continue to rise, especially with the tightening on emissions standards for heavy-duty diesel trucks.

3.    Loose Monetary Policy

Like gold and silver, the price of platinum is also driven by inflation and loose monetary policy.

In fact, the rise in platinum prices are said to be, in large part, due to the Fed’s August 13th announcement on quantitative easing.

And the United States is not alone. The whole world – from the European Union to China – is engaging in loose monetary policy in an effort to boost their floundering economies.

Indeed, concerns over inflation are driving much of the investment demand for platinum.

Clearly, platinum bullion is an excellent way to diversify your metals investments.

If you have a Self-Directed IRA (or are interested in opening one), you can contribute a wide variety of platinum bars and coins to your account. And like gold and silver, you can order platinum bars and coins through our secure online ordering system.

Have you purchased platinum bullion to add to your portfolio?

Did you buy it at a low or high point?

And how do you feel about the $2000 prediction? Is it realistic?

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