Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) vs Silver (one troy ounce) (SILVER)

Applied Materials Inc. is the world’s largest manufacturer of semiconductor wafer fabrication equipment, with a broad portfolio covering nearly every segment of the WFE ecosystem. The company holds a leading market share in deposition technologies, which involve adding new material layers to semiconductor wafers. Applied Materials has greater exposure to general-purpose logic chips produced by integrated device manufacturers and foundries. Its customer base includes some of the world’s largest chipmakers, such as TSMC, Intel, and Samsung.

Silver priced in U.S. dollars represents the market value of one troy ounce of silver. Silver is both a precious metal and an industrial commodity, used in jewelry, investment products, electronics, solar panels, and other manufacturing applications. Its price is influenced by precious-metals demand, industrial activity, mine supply, investor flows, real interest rates, and the U.S. dollar. Because it has significant industrial uses, silver can be more cyclical and volatile than gold.