Palladium has significantly gained for a 15th consecutive day, exceeding the highest-ever price of gold, Bloomberg reports.
On Thursday, the rare white metal traded at a record $1,940.34 per ounce, in what extended palladium’s year-to-date gains to 54%.
The Thursday palladium index notable propelled it past gold’s record of $1,921.17 an ounce which was registered back in 2011.
The developments come after South African mines were shut down for 24 hours due electricity shortages; South Africa is ranked the world’s second-largest palladium producer, while Russia is currently touted as the leader in producing the metal.
Bloomberg quoted analyst Daniel Briesemann from Commerzbank as suggesting that “nothing can slow palladium” now.
“Even though we regard the steep price rise as exaggerated, there is no end in sight to the rally,” he added.
Briesemann was echoed by Jonathan Butler, precious metals strategist at Mitsubishi, who did not rule out palladium hitting the $2,020 per ounce threshold before the end of the year.
“South African electricity supply concerns have helped palladium this week, together with still strong physical demand,” he said as quoted by Bloomberg.
The silvery-white precious metal has enjoyed a steady upward climb in value over the past decade, starting off at a low of merely $235 per ounce in November 2008, in contrast to gold, silver, and platinum.
Palladium is used in pollution control devices, electronics, jewellery, groundwater treatment equipment, chemical applications and dentistry.