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By Arpan Varghese
(Reuters) - A retail investment frenzy in silver over the past couple of days driven by social media has left dealers in some regions scrambling for bars and coins to meet demand.
Silver prices fell on Tuesday as a buying spree by smaller investors seen mainly in silver mining shares and exchange-traded funds fizzled out following a margin hike on futures contracts by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
The buying, inspired by a recent rush by retail investors into heavily shorted stocks like U.S. videogame retailer GameStop, took prices to a near eight-year peak.
Retail investors cannot directly access the wholesale silver market, so instead they have bought into bars and coins.
The UK's Royal Mint said on Tuesday it saw 14 times the usual demand over the weekend for its silver products, including bars and coins.
U.S. bullion broker Apmex warned on Monday of delays in processing silver transactions because of surging volumes.
Other U.S. dealers, including JM Bullion and SD Bullion, warned customers of shipping delays of five to 10 days.
"This is the first time in our company's history in which our team discussed the capability to turn off the trading platform sales for physical silver in a situation where we were unable to buy any additional ounces from our suppliers," SD Bullion's president and chief executive Tyler Wall said.
Everett Millman at Gainesville Coins in Florida said they were expecting shipping delays, perhaps until mid-March, for some products like Silver Eagles and Silver Maples.
David Mitchell, managing director at Indigo Precious Metals in Singapore, warned on Monday of "massive shortages".
"We'll be completely out of stock if it carries on like this - the first time since our company opened in Singapore seven years ago," he said.
Some customers sold gold to buy silver, said Gregor Gregersen, founder of Silver Bullion Pte Ltd, another dealer in Singapore.
"There's a definite shortage of popular silver coins developing (especially North American coins)," he said. "However, we're still able to source 1,000 oz good delivery bars at nearly the same premiums for now."
While a rapid spike in demand has tightened supplies, there is plenty of metal around and delays should ease once it can be shipped to where it is needed, dealers and industry experts said.
Kevin Rich, global gold market adviser for Australia's Perth Mint, said that while dealers of coins and bars might see some supply constraints and therefore charge higher premiums on these products, the Mint does not anticipate any such issues.