Silver Surges Past $66.75 as Solar Demand Tightens Global Supply Deficit

Silver extended its rally to $66.75 per ounce (USD) — or $92.12 per ounce in Canadian dollars — on September 7, 2026, matching gold’s 1.06% single-session gain and holding the gold/silver ratio steady at 67.1. That ratio, calculated by dividing gold’s $4,476.60/oz price by silver’s $66.75, sits well below the five-year average of 82, signalling that silver has meaningfully outperformed its monetary sibling over the cycle — and that institutional positioning in the white metal has deepened considerably.

Industrial Demand Is Doing the Heavy Lifting

Silver is no longer simply a monetary hedge. The Solar Energy Industries Association estimates that photovoltaic panel manufacturing now accounts for roughly 14% of total annual silver consumption, a share that has nearly doubled since 2020 as next-generation TOPCon and perovskite cell architectures require more silver paste per watt than older PERC designs. Simultaneously, the EV supply chain — from battery management circuitry to charging connectors — is absorbing an incremental 60–70 million ounces per year globally, according to Silver Institute projections for 2026. Combined, these two technology segments are the primary reason the market has been in structural deficit since 2023.

The Silver Institute’s most recent data pegs the 2025 supply shortfall at 182 million ounces, the third-largest deficit on record, and preliminary 2026 figures suggest the gap will widen further. Above-ground investment-grade inventories tracked on the LBMA and COMEX have drawn down for 14 consecutive months. Mine supply has not kept pace: output disruptions in Mexico — still the world’s largest silver-producing nation — stemming from regulatory reviews of water-use licences have curtailed production at several major operations by an estimated 8–10% year-over-year.

First Majestic Silver: A Canadian Lens on the Deficit

First Majestic Silver Corp. (TSX: FR), headquartered in Vancouver, is among the most directly leveraged Canadian-listed producers to the current price environment. The company operates three producing mines in Mexico, including the flagship San Dimas and Santa Elena assets, and recently commissioned its Nevada-based Jerritt Canyon operation. At $66.75/oz silver, First Majestic’s all-in sustaining cost guidance of approximately $20–22/oz (USD) implies sector-leading margins above $44/oz — a dynamic that has driven the stock sharply higher through the summer of 2026. Mexico’s regulatory headwinds are a risk the company has flagged explicitly, but management has guided that permitted water allocations at its current sites remain intact through at least mid-2027.

Gold/Silver Ratio and What It Signals

A ratio of 67.1 is historically significant. When the ratio trades below 70, silver has tended to enter a phase of relative outperformance versus gold, attracting momentum-driven capital from commodity funds and family offices that rotate between the two metals. The last time the ratio sustained a sub-70 reading for more than one quarter — in 2020 — silver subsequently rallied from roughly $18/oz to above $29/oz within six months. Analysts at several Toronto-based commodity desks are now modelling a scenario in which continued industrial demand growth compresses the ratio toward 60 by Q2 2027, implying a silver price above $74/oz if gold holds current levels.

For Canadian retail investors, silver exposure is accessible through TSX-listed producers such as First Majestic (FR), Pan American Silver (PAAS), and MAG Silver (MAG), as well as through the Sprott Physical Silver Trust (PSLV) for direct metal exposure without operational risk. With the loonie at 1.3800 against the USD, every dollar of silver price appreciation translates to $1.38 of revenue gain in Canadian-dollar terms for domestic producers — a currency tailwind that further amplifies already-robust margins at current spot levels.