As the US Securities and Exchange Commission approved the silver exchange-traded fund (ETF), the international price of silver surged and in China it surpassed 2900 yuan (US$362.5) per kilogram on Wednesday.

This price is the highest price since China opened its silver market in 1999.

According to Shanghai Huatong silver trade market, the spot price of the top class silver was between 2920 to 2930 yuan (US$365 to 366.3) per kilogram, 40 yuan (US$5) higher than on Tuesday.

Many insiders are forecasting huge potentials for this metal on the market.

Zhu Zhigang, analyst from the trade market, said as a lower price metal, silver had been closely bonded to gold for quite a long time.

However, during the past two years, he said, silver seems to have rid itself of the link to gold and became independent in the market. The silver price has gone up more rapidly than gold.

The analyst said the investment value of silver had been seriously underestimated in the past decades.

The exchange rate between gold and silver is 1:60 today, and many insiders say that there remains room for a further rise in silver prices.

The world's increasing demand for silver will also push silver prices up. Currently, demand for silver is growing by 11 percent every year in the world but the output has increased by less than ten percent in 2005.

(Xinhua News Agency March 24, 2006)