Silver Prices have been followed for centuries. Silver (XAG) is a precious metal used in jewelry, silverware, electronics, and currency. Silver prices are widely followed in financial markets around the world. Silver has been traded for thousands of years and was once used for currency backing. Silver continues to be one of the most commonly traded commodities today. Silver prices are highly volatile due to speculation and supply and demand. Ag is the chemical symbol for silver on the periodic table of elements and its ISO currency symbol is XAG.