(85 triệu thùng, số liệu năm 2006) so với bất kỳ mặt hàng khác. Tầm quan trọng của dầu thô cũng bắt nguồn từ thực tế là nó là sản phẩm cơ sở đối với một số hàng hoá không thể thiếu. Xăng dầu, nhiên liệu máy bay phản lực, chất dẻo, và một số sản phẩm cần thiết khác có nguồn gốc từ nó. | Chapter 15 Getting the Glitters Gold Silver and Platinum 245 including creating control switches for electrical appliances and connecting electronic circuit boards. Because it s a good electrical conductor silver will keep playing an important role in the industrial sector. Jewelry and silverware A large number of people believe incorrectly that the largest consumer of silver is the jewelry industry. Although silver does play a large role in creating jewelry and silverware demand from this sector accounted for 27 percent of total silver consumption in 2005 the latest year for which data is currently available. Photography Did you know that the photographic industry is also a major consumer of silver accounting for about 20 percent of total consumption. In photography silver is compounded with halogens to form silver halide which is used in photographic film. Almost 200 Million Troy Ounces of silver was used by the photography industry in 2003. That number is slowly decreasing however because digital cameras which don t use silver halide are becoming more popular than traditional cameras. Keep this decrease in demand in mind as you consider investing in silver. Monitor the commercial activity in each of these market segments looking for signs of strength or weakness in these areas because a demand increase or decrease in one of these markets will have a direct impact on the price of silver. Knowing where the silver comes from is always important to an investor so I list the top producers of silver in the world in Table 15-3. Table 15-3 Top Silver Producers 2006 Figures Country Production Millions of ounces Peru Mexico Australia China Chile Russia Poland United States Canada Kazakhstan 246 Part IV Pedal to the Metal Investing in Metals If you re interested in finding out more about silver and its investment possibilities the Silver Institute maintains a comprehensive database on the silver market. The Silver .
