Silver (SI=F) July futures opened at $67.84 per ounce on Monday, 1.8% lower than the Friday closing price. The price of silver moved slightly lower in early trading to $67.32 by 7:12 a.m. ET.

The opening price of silver stayed in the $74-$75 range last week and hasn’t opened at around $67 since late March. Silver prices are down appreciably to start the week, along with stock futures, following further escalation in the Israel-Iran conflict. The latest missile attacks from both sides have sent gold prices and silver prices lower to start the week and pushed oil prices (BZ=F) back towards $100 a barrel.

Following a stronger-than-expected jobs report on Friday, the Fed is now singularly focused on inflation. Two inflation reports coming later this week will shed more light on just how much the war in Iran is affecting price concerns here in the U.S.

Current price of silver

The opening price of silver futures on Monday was down 1.8% compared to Friday’s close. Here’s how the opening silver price has changed versus last week, month, and year:

• One week ago: -8.8%

• One month ago: -16%

• One year ago: +90.3%

For context, silver’s year-over-year growth was 173.3% on May 14.

24/7 silver price tracking: Don’t forget you can monitor the current price of silver on Yahoo Finance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Want to learn more about the current top-performing companies in the silver industry? Explore a list of the top-performing companies in the silver industry using the Yahoo Finance Screener. You can create your own screeners with over 150 different screening criteria.

How beginners can invest in silver

There are several ways to invest in silver, from buying the metal itself to choosing financial products tied to its price. Here’s how each option works.

Physical silver

The most direct way to invest in silver is to buy it in physical form, either as bullion bars or government-minted coins. This gives you direct ownership of the metal, with no counterparty risk from an exchange or financial institution.

The trade-off is logistics. You’ll need to think about storage, security, and potentially insurance. Dealers also charge a markup above the spot price, which means prices need to rise enough to cover that premium before you’re in profit. Still, for investors who want tangible ownership of their assets, physical silver is a straightforward option.

Silver ETFs

Silver exchange-traded funds (ETFs) trade on stock exchanges the same way individual stocks do. Some ETFs hold physical silver directly, giving shareholders fractional ownership of real metal. Others invest in silver mining companies rather than the commodity itself.

ETFs are generally the most accessible and liquid way to get silver exposure. You can buy and sell them through any standard brokerage account, and there’s no storage or insurance to worry about.

Keep in mind, though, that some silver funds are taxed as collectibles rather than investments, which can mean a higher tax rate. It’s worth confirming the tax treatment with a professional before investing. You’ll also have to keep an eye on expense ratios.

Read more: 5 ways to invest in silver for beginners

Price of silver chart

Whether you’re tracking the price of silver since last month or last year, the price-of-silver chart below shows the precious metal’s value journey so far this year.

More silver coverage from the Yahoo Finance team: