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Guilherme Mazui

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What is the Difference Between Gold and Silver?

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Gold and silver are both precious metals with distinct characteristics that make them different in terms of their physical properties, prices, volatility, and uses. Here are the key differences between gold and silver:

  1. Price: Gold is more expensive than silver. As of February 2023, gold and silver were trading at approximately $1,840 and $21.64 per ounce, respectively.
  2. Volatility: Silver is more volatile than gold. The volatility in silver prices can be two to three times greater than that of gold on a given day.
  3. Industrial and Commercial Uses: Silver has more industrial and commercial applications than gold. Approximately half of all silver bought and sold on the market is used commercially, with applications ranging from dentistry to electronics. In contrast, gold has very few commercial applications aside from jewelry.
  4. Supply and Demand: The annual supply of new silver is close to 1 billion ounces, while the annual gold supply is around 120 million ounces. This makes the value of annual gold supply 12 times bigger than silver supply, despite silver's lower price.
  5. Density and Storage: Gold is denser than silver, meaning it takes up less space for the same dollar value. At current prices, the same dollar investment will get you roughly 80 more ounces of silver than gold.

Investors should consider these differences when deciding whether to invest in gold or silver. Gold may be more suitable for diversifying a portfolio, while silver may be more accessible to small retail investors due to its lower price. Both metals can provide a hedge in a potential economic or market downturn, as well as during sustained periods of rising inflation.

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  • What is the Difference Between Gold and Silver?
  • Comparative Table: Gold vs Silver

    • Comparative Table: Gold vs Silver

    The Medallion architecture is a data management structure that organizes data into Bronze, Silver, and Gold layers. Here is a table summarizing the differences between Gold and Silver tables in this architecture:

    Feature Gold Table Silver Table
    Purpose Represents data transformed for specific consumption or use cases Represents the result of applying business transformation logic
    Data Model Highly structured, denormalized, and read-optimized Less structured, more focused on business logic and constraints
    Usage Read-only, used by applications and reports Serves as an intermediate stage between Bronze and Gold layers
    Data Integration Data is integrated from various sources, often resulting in a shift in data ownership Data is transformed and validated across source systems
    Business Rules Complex business rules are applied Business rules are applied, but less complex than in Gold tables
    Storage Format Efficient storage format, preferably Delta Storage format can vary, but Delta is commonly used
    Versioning Uses versioning for rolling back processing errors Versioning may be present, but not as critical as in Gold tables
    Historization Historization is applied only for specific use cases or consumers Historization may be present, but not as critical as in Gold tables

    In summary, Gold tables are highly structured and optimized for consumption by applications and reports, while Silver tables serve as an intermediate stage between raw data and Gold tables, focusing on business transformation logic and validation across source systems.

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    Guilherme Mazui

    Guilherme Mazui is graduated in journalism from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) and a master's degree in Communication from the University of São Paulo (USP). In addition, he has experience in advertising writing and has worked as a content editor in several companies.