PPLT Soars in 2025 as Platinum Price Hits Fresh High
- The precious metal is closing some of its year-to-date gap with gold.
- A key driver of the tightening market is falling mine supply.
All that glitters isn’t gold; sometimes it’s platinum.
The precious metal surged this week, hitting $1,085 per ounce, its highest level in over a year. That rally helped lift the abrdn Physical Platinum Shares ETF (PPLT), the largest U.S.-listed platinum ETF with over $1 billion in assets, to an 18.2% year-to-date gain.
PPLT Gains as Supply Tightens
The move came on the heels of a bullish quarterly report from the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC). In its Platinum Quarterly report published Monday, the group projected that the global platinum market would see a deficit of 966,000 ounces (966 koz) in 2025, up from its previous forecast of 848 koz. If that projection holds, it would mark the third-consecutive year of “substantial deficits,” according to the council.
A key driver of the tightening market is falling mine supply. In the first quarter of 2025, global platinum production dropped 13% year over year, reaching its lowest level since the second quarter of 2020 at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. For the full year, refined output is expected to decrease 6%, outpacing the 4% projected decline in demand.
While concerns over global trade have loomed large in recent months, WPIC noted that weaker 2025 demand is mainly the result of a cyclical slowdown in glass demand, particularly in China. Meanwhile, other sectors like automotive, jewelry and investment demand remain sensitive to geopolitical shifts but have shown resilience.
Platinum Market Breakdown
Platinum's supply and demand picture remains highly concentrated. Roughly 71% of this year’s global supply is expected to come from South Africa, making the metal particularly vulnerable to local production disruptions.
On the demand side, 38% is expected to come from autocatalysts, which use platinum to reduce vehicle emissions; 27% is tied to industrial applications; 26% is from jewelry demand; and 9% is from investment demand, including bars, coins and ETFs.
Despite the recent surge, platinum is still trailing gold in performance. Year to date, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) is up 26%, outpacing PPLT.
Over the past decade, the gap is even more stark. Gold is up 163%, while platinum has lost 12%—a reflection of gold’s growing role as a global safe haven and reserve asset, drivers that platinum lacks.
Investor flows tell a similar story. Even with the recent rally, PPLT has seen $64 million in outflows in 2025, suggesting many investors remain unconvinced that platinum’s recent strength marks a lasting turnaround.
Still, with supply tightening and deficits deepening, some investors are starting to take notice.
