New Delhi, Dec. 27 -- Silver gained 140% in 2025. I checked, and that's not the name of a retro-ironic cryptocurrency spun out from, say, AngryHamsterRugPull or ButtToken. It's the actual metal from column 11 of the Periodic Table of Elements. That's a hot column, as it turns out. One space up from silver is copper, up 36%. One down is gold, up 69%.

The whole neighborhood shot higher in 2025, really. One column to the left, platinum jumped 133%, and palladium, used to cut smog in car exhaust, 95%. Two to three columns to the right, aluminum rose 15%, and tin, 49%. And have you seen the price of adamantium and vibranium?

That was a test; those come from Marvel superhero movies. If we're going to have a chance at keeping up with markets i...