Silver ETF Hits the Market
Updated from 11:07 a.m. EDT
Silver bells rang on Wall Street Friday as
Barclays Global Investors
launched its highly anticipated
iShares Silver Trust
(SLV) - Get Report
exchange-traded fund linked to the precious metal.
The ETF opened at $129, and in afternoon trading had jumped more than 6% to $137.05 on volume of more than 2 million shares.
The SLV trades in a similar fashion to the pair of existing gold ETFs, the
StreetTracks Gold Trust
(GLD) - Get Report
and BGI's own
iShares Comex Gold Trust
(IAU) - Get Report
. Under the structure, the precious metal is tucked away in a vault while investors buy and sell shares that each represent about 10 ounces of silver.
"If you were not born with a silver spoon in your mouth, you now have an easy way to access the silver market with the first and only silver ETF," says Christine Hudacko, a spokeswoman for BGI.
The ETF had to clear several hurdles before launching, including a long wait for regulatory approval and an attack by the Silver Users Association, a trade group that lobbies on behalf of silver producers and distributors. The group contested the ETF, saying it would make silver illiquid and lead to losses of manufacturing jobs.
