How do I trade other precious metals?

Gold is not the only precious metal that can be utilised as a credible portfolio diversifier. Silver is its nearest cousin and trades roughly in line with gold, but it is not as pure a play due to silver being used more widely in industrial activity.

As silver is used to make things, a downturn in the economy can drag down the price of the metal more than it would gold.

Platinum is also considered an industrial metal, with significant demand coming from automotive catalytic converter manufacturers. As a result, platinum is particularly exposed to car sale volumes.

Lesser known is palladium, which has many electronic and industrial uses, including in solar energy, fuel cells and catalytic converters.

One group of metals increasingly catching the eye of investors is Rare Earth Metals (REM). These total 17 in number and include the 15 lanthanides, as well as scandium and yttrium. Their emergence as a tradeable asset stems from their use in industrial production, specifically batteries.

All precious metals offer unique inflationary protection, given that they have an intrinsic value and are limited in supply. However, it is gold that provides the strongest of safe-haven hedges to volatility and risk because it is far less affected by the laws of supply and demand.

Reprinted from eToro, the copyright all reserved by the original author.