Gold and silver prices will soar in 2025
Posted by WATANABETAIGA
There are only a few days left until 2025.
This year, among the inquiries we received from customers, the topic of "rising bullion prices" was as common as the interest in the design and history of the products themselves.
Every day, news and newspapers reported that the prices of gold and silver had reached new highs, and I feel that this year has seen a rise in interest in precious metals as physical assets, even among people who were not previously familiar with antiques.
The silver tableware and pocket watches we sell are more than just decorative items; they are precious metals in themselves and have value.
This time, I would like to organize the background of the price fluctuations that occurred in 2025 and explore how they relate to the market price of antique products.
1. Market price trends for gold and silver in 2025
In one word, the precious metals market in 2025 recorded a "historic surge."
First, regarding gold, as of January it was around 15,000 yen per gram, but since the beginning of the year the price has continued to rise at a speed that far exceeded expectations.
As of December 24, 2025, when I am writing this blog, the price has reached an all-time high of over 25,000 yen per gram.
The price has risen so rapidly that it feels like a distant memory from just a few years ago when people were shocked by the figure of 10,000 yen per gram.
(Reference) Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo Gold Price Trend
And even more than gold, silver was to become the main star of 2025.
Since ancient times, silver has been produced in greater quantities and is cheaper than gold, and as such, it has been placed at a significantly lower price than gold in the index known technically as the "gold-silver ratio."
However, in 2025, the picture changed dramatically, with silver's price growth rate at one point far exceeding that of gold, achieving record growth.
Among investors, there was even talk that silver, which had previously been overshadowed by gold, had awakened as a "sleeping giant."
As of January, the price was around 170 yen per gram, but like gold, it has continued to rise throughout the year, and has increased at a faster rate than gold, especially since September.
As of December 24, 2025, the price will exceed 400 yen per gram, more than doubling in one year.
2. Reasons for the rise in gold and silver prices in 2025
Why did such a huge price surge occur in the year 2025?
The reason for this is not the result of a single event, but rather the result of a complex confluence of factors on a global scale.
First, the biggest impact was the shift in US monetary policy.
It all started when the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States, relaxed its strict policy of curbing rising prices and shifted to lowering interest rates.
To get a little more technical here, when bank interest rates fall, people find it harder to increase their assets by depositing cash in the bank.
On the other hand, precious metals such as gold and silver do not generate interest simply by holding them, but because the metals themselves have value, they have the property of being less likely to lose value even if the value of currency (money) falls. This is called an "inflation hedge."
It can be said that 2025 was the year when trust in paper money wavered worldwide, and money from all over the world flowed into gold and silver, which are relatively ``visible physical assets.''
Furthermore, the situation has been exacerbated by the ongoing instability of the global situation, or so-called "geopolitical risk."
With tensions in the Middle East and Europe continuing unresolved, investors sought out gold and silver as "safe haven assets in case something were to happen."
Additionally, in Japan, the ongoing weakening of the yen is also spurring price increases in Japanese yen terms.
And one reason that is unique to silver that cannot be overlooked is the structural changes in modern society.
Silver is essential to realizing a decarbonized society, which is currently being promoted around the world.
Silver, the most efficient conductor of electricity, is used in large quantities in the conductive parts of solar panels and the electronic control units of electric vehicles (EVs).
Furthermore, a lot of silver is used in data centers, power plants, and semiconductor manufacturing in response to the recent "AI boom. "
In 2025, while demand for these metals exploded, a supply shortage became apparent as supplies from silver mines could not keep up.
Silver is often mined as a by-product of other metals (such as copper and zinc), so it is difficult to increase production immediately even if demand for silver increases.
In other words, silver was recognized as valuable in both aspects: as a defensive asset and as an offensive industrial material essential for the latest technology.
3. Correlation with the market price of antique gold and silver products
This rise in bullion prices has a very direct impact on the market for the antique products that we offer.
Here, what beginners to antiques should be aware of is the price structure of antiques.
The prices of the silver tableware and gold watches we sell are usually determined by a combination of three factors: "metal value (the value of the weight of the metal itself)," "art and craft value (the skill and design of the artisan)," and "historical rarity (how few pieces exist today)."
Due to the rise in gold and silver prices in 2025, the underlying "bullion value" has risen sharply.
Until now, the price was largely determined by the history and beauty of the metal, but as the prices of gold and silver have doubled and tripled, the value of the metal alone has become considerable.
Items with a high silver weight, such as pure silver salvas and teapots, are particularly susceptible to rising bullion values.
There is a technical term called "bullion cracking," which refers to a culturally very sad phenomenon in which the price when melted down and turned into bullion is higher than the selling price as an antique.
2025 was the year that forced the entire antiques market to reassess prices to prevent this tragic phenomenon.
In order to prevent old silver products from disappearing from the market and ending up in the hands of bullion dealers, their value as antiques had to rise in tandem with the bullion market price.
However, if you look at it from another perspective, this means that owning antiques is a very solid form of asset formation.
Even if their popularity as antiques dies down in the future, the value of their base materials, gold and silver, will not disappear.
The "hallmarks" (stamps that certify purity and year of manufacture) engraved on antique gold and silver serve as a kind of certificate from the world's oldest grading agency, proving that the item is indeed made of precious metal.
summary
The surge in gold and silver prices in 2025 was an astonishing event from an economic perspective, but for those who love antiques, it may have been an opportunity to reexamine the value of the items they own.
While prices are certainly higher than before, this year's market prices have once again proven that metals such as gold and silver have remained universally valuable to humanity for thousands of years.
I think it's a bit bland to view antiques solely as investment tools.
However, in today's unstable society, the sense of security that comes from knowing you have "value that has remained unchanged for a long time" in your hands undoubtedly leads to peace of mind.
Enjoying tea brewed in a silver teapot may be the ultimate modern luxury, combining the spiritual enrichment of appreciating its beauty with the practical peace of mind that comes from knowing your assets are protected.
It is difficult to fully predict how prices will fluctuate in the future, but we would like to continue to introduce items to our customers, valuing their true beauty and historical background, rather than being misled by price figures alone.
We hope that you will treat the silverware and watches that have accompanied you through this turbulent year with even more affection than ever before.
