Silver — Structural brief

Where silver is produced

Mexico is the largest producer of silver, at 24.3 percent of the published world total in 2025^[1]. It is followed by Peru at 13.9 percent, China at 13.1 percent and Bolivia at 5.8 percent. The USGS puts world production at 26,000 metric tons; the sum of the country figures is 25,930 metric tons, the difference being rounding in the published total.^[1] Reserves are held principally by Peru (110,000 metric tons), Russia (92,000 metric tons), Australia (91,000 metric tons)^[1]. The largest reserve holder is not the largest producer, which is the usual sign that the constraint is capital and permitting rather than geology.

How concentrated supply is

Measured by the Herfindahl-Hirschman index over production shares, silver supply is unconcentrated, with an index of 1,192. The top three producers hold 51.3 percent of output, and 3 producers together account for half of supply. An index below 1,500 is conventionally read as unconcentrated and above 2,500 as highly concentrated; the thresholds are the United States merger-review bands, used here as a published reference point rather than as a judgement about market conduct. The United States was 77 percent reliant on net imports for silver in 2025, with the principal import sources over 2021–24 being Mexico, Canada, Chile, Turkey.^[2] The principal sources of United States imports over 2021–24 were Mexico (47 percent), Canada (18 percent) and Chile (5 percent)^[3].

Trade measures in force

The USGS compilation of export controls effective January 2026 records 4 measures bearing on silver. China maintains an export licensing requirement for materials and technologies covering Antimony (2024), bismuth (2025), synthesized diamond (2025), gallium (2023), germanium (2023), graphite (2023), indium (2025), magnesium materials (2024), molybdenum (2025), rare earths (2025), silver (2026), tellurium (2025), tungsten (2025), and items related to lithium batteries and artificial graphite anode materials (2025), as compiled by the USGS from official and reported sources effective January 2026.^[4] Laos maintains an export ban covering Raw minerals, including copper, gold, iron, nickel, potassium, silver, and zinc (2024), as compiled by the USGS from official and reported sources effective January 2026.^[4] Venezuela maintains an export ban covering Bauxite, cassiterite, columbite-tantalite, copper, gold, rhodium, silver, and thorium (2024), as compiled by the USGS from official and reported sources effective January 2026.^[4] Tanzania maintains an export ban covering Ore concentrates of copper, gold, nickel, and silver (2017), as compiled by the USGS from official and reported sources effective January 2026.^[4] A control listed here removes the tonnage concerned from the international market by law, whatever the production table implies about availability.

Recent United States official notices

Federal Register documents naming silver, most recent first. 2025-11-07: Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals. Critical minerals are essential for national security, economic stability, and supply chain resilience because they underpin key industries, drive technological innovation, and support critical infrastructure vital for a modern American economy. The United States is heavily reliant on imports of certain mineral commodities from foreign sources, some of which are at risk of serious, sustained, and long-term supply chain disruptions.^[5]