- Over the last year, platinum prices have underperformed the larger U.S. stock market.
- PPLT, PLTM, and PGM are the three platinum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that trade in the United States, sorted by one-year trailing total returns.
- Physical platinum or platinum futures contracts are used to back these ETFs.
What is a platinum exchange-traded fund (ETF)?
Platinum ETFs allow investors to obtain exposure to the metal without actually owning it. These funds invest in futures contracts to track changes in platinum prices.
Do palladium ETFs exist?
The Aberdeen Standard Actual Palladium Shares ETF (NYSEArca: PALL), which aims to track the price of physical palladium, had a wild year, reaching a new high in May before plummeting to become one of the worst-performing main commodities in 2021.
So far this year, PALL has lost 27.4 percent of its value. On Wednesday, the ETF was up 5.6 percent, giving it a month-to-month gain of 10.7 percent.
According to Reuters, some market analysts believe the precious metal would rise next year as the car sector recovers, boosting demand for the metal used in engine exhausts, before the momentum behind electric vehicles pushes prices into a long-term slump.
Is gold a better investment than platinum?
Platinum is not a better investment than gold in general. Gold is more stable, easier to mine, and its price does not change as much as platinum. Gold is also worth significantly more than platinum.
Anglo American Platinum 2.05 million ounces
Anglo American Platinum, based in Johannesburg, South Africa, was founded in 1995 and is the world’s largest platinum mining business, producing just over two million ounces of platinum in 2019.
Anglo American Platinum’s assets are primarily located in South Africa’s Bushveld Complex (which includes the world’s largest open-pit PGM mines, Mogalakwena, Mototolo, and Amandelbult) and Zimbabwe’s Bushveld Complex (which includes the world’s largest open-pit PGM mines, Mogalakwena, Mototolo, and Amandelbult) (Unki mine).
Anglo American Platinum’s 14 concentrators process the majority of the mined ore, which is then smelted in its three refineries in South Africa.
The precious metal refinery of the South African platinum corporation is being built near two of the world’s largest platinum mines. Other PGMs extracted from the ore include ruthenium, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and osmium. The refinery also extracts copper, nickel, and zinc.
Impala Platinum 1.31 million ounces
Impala Platinum Holdings (Implats) is a South African corporation with activities in Zimbabwe’s Great Dyke and the Bushveld Complex.
Implats was created in 1966 as a subsidiary of Union Corporation and is based in Johannesburg.
Implats is the second-largest platinum-mining business on our list, with 1.31 million ounces of platinum concentrate produced in 2019 via mine-to-market activities.
Impala mine, located in South Africa’s North West province, is the most important contributor to this output. It has more than 131 million attributable ounces of platinum in its mineral resources.
Impala’s main operational base is near Rustenburg, on the western edge of the Bushveld Complex. It also owns a 73 percent stake in Marula, a town on the island’s eastern side.
Zimplats, the miner’s Zimbabwe division, owns a 50% stake in Mimosa Platinum, a joint venture with Sibanye-Stillwater.
Impala Canada was formed in December 2019 after Implats acquired North American Palladium.
Sibanye-Stillwater 1.08 million ounces
Sibanye-Stillwater, which was created in 2013 as a gold-mining business with headquarters in Johannesburg, is third on the list of major platinum-mining corporations.
Sibanye gained fame as a platinum producer after acquiring Bermuda-based Aquarius Platinum in 2016 and London-based platinum miner Lonmin in 2019.
Lonmin’s principal operation in the west side of South Africa’s Bushveld Complex, known as the Marikana mine, as well as Aquarius’ Kroondal and Mimosa mines, produce the majority of the company’s platinum.
In 2019, Sibanye-Americas-focused Stillwater’s PGM activities produced 593,974 ounces of primary gold, while its African operations produced 1.6 million ounces.
Northam Platinum 900,000 ounces
Johannesburg-based Northam Platinum is a South African-based independent and integrated PGM producer with operations in the Bushveld Complex.
Its principal platinum facilities are the Zondereinde and Booysendal mines in South Africa, which contributed significantly to yearly platinum output increasing to 900,000 ounces in the 2019/20 fiscal year.
Northam’s three primary products are platinum, palladium, and rhodium, which are sold to industries such as jewelry, car production, medical equipment, electronics, and heavy industries.
WC Heraeus of Germany has signed a refining-process contract for Northam’s PGM concentrate. Platinum, gold, silver, palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, and iridium are separated at Heraeus’ Hanau factory on a weekly basis.
Norilsk Nickel 700,000 ounces
Norilsk Nickel, or Nornickel, is Russia’s largest mining business and the world’s largest producer of palladium and refined nickel. It’s also a top-ten copper producer.
Nornickel was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Moscow, Russia. Its Russian mines on the Taimyr and Kola Peninsulas, as well as mines in South Africa and Botswana, produce PGMs and other precious metals as by-products.
It also has commercial interests in western Finland. Norilsk Nickel’s other mining operations include gold, silver, cobalt, tellurium, and selenium extraction and refining.
Is platinum a good investment in 2021?
“The global economy is continuing to improve, with the IMF forecasting 5.9% growth in 2021, and platinum is expected to profit as a result. In 2021 and 2022, residual pandemic impacts, such as semiconductor shortages, will continue to limit platinum demand, which would otherwise be much higher. The year 2022 will be essential in settling the dust from 2020 and releasing the residual semi-processed material accumulated in 2020. The speed with which demand bottlenecks are handled will have a significant impact on the platinum market balance, and an intriguing conclusion in 2023 might be the result.
“During this extended era of increased global risk, platinum remains an alternative investment for investors. The 25% increase in demand for bar and coin this quarter reflects investors reacting to increased risk, and this trend is expected to continue next year. Similarly, many funds’ shifts from ETFs to mining equities reflect how investors are now achieving returns, rather than a loss of faith in the asset class. Given a year-on-year fluctuation in investment demand of over a million ounces, the investment demand prediction for 2022, at 302 koz, is appropriately modest.
In ten years, how much will platinum be worth?
For December’s close, LongForecast predicts a projection of $822 for 2021. Platinum prices are expected to close at $697 in 2022 and rise to $769 the following year, according to the platinum price projection. It should soar to $917 in December 2024, then plummet to $767 in December 2025.
Meanwhile, CoinPriceForecast predicts that gold will reach $1,065 by the end of 2021. According to the site’s platinum price forecast, it will rise to $1,127 per year from there, and $1,274 by the end of 2023. In the next year, 2024, platinum should be worth $1,563. Platinum is expected to cost $1,712 in 2025 and $1,942 in 2026. According to the site, one ounce of platinum will be valued $2,233 on December 31, 2027, and $2,309 on the same date a year later. Platinum is expected to complete the decade at $2,568 per ounce, with a high of $2,744 in 2030. Finally, according to the site, the platinum price on December 31, 2033 will be $3,476.
Last but not least, Wallet Investor predicts that platinum will be valued $1,043.65 in a year and $1,440.60 in five years, according to Wallet Investor.
Is platinum a wise investment?
Because platinum is found deeper in the Earth’s core, it is also rarer and more difficult to mine than gold. This combination of limited supply and high demand should result in a profitable investment, but platinum is not for the faint of heart.
Will platinum reappear?
Catalytic converters, which transform harmful gases and contaminants in exhaust fumes into less-hazardous gases, use platinum as a significant raw material. As more countries implement stricter car pollution standards in order to satisfy environmental goals, demand for autocatalytic converters has surged, boosting platinum usage in the industrial sector.
Furthermore, the development of hydrogen fuel cell technology, which uses platinum as a catalyst, may boost platinum demand in the long run.
By mixing hydrogen (the fuel) and oxygen (from the air) over a platinum catalyst, hydrogen fuel cells produce emission-free energy.
According to the World Platinum Investment Council’s (WPIC) Q2 platinum report, global refined supply is predicted to climb to 6.047 million ounces in 2021, up 21% from the previous year. On the back of “the South African recovery following the major interruptions of 2020,” the metal’s supply is predicted to revive to approximate 2019 levels in 2021.
South Africa is the world’s largest producer of platinum, and the country’s mining and refining industries were significantly hampered by the Covid-19 lockdown measures in 2020.
This year’s demand is also predicted to increase. The major consumer of platinum is the automobile industry, followed by other industrial end-users (chemical, petroleum, electrical, glass, medical and biomedical, and others). Platinum, like gold, is regarded as a safe-haven asset and is utilized in the manufacture of jewelry.