New Delhi, Nov. 3 -- With Diwali approaching, investors looking to add precious metals to their portfolios face a choice between gold and silver exchange-traded funds (ETFs). While both offer exposure to precious metals without the need to purchase or store physical bullion, their returns and risk profiles differ considerably.

Value Research data shows that silver ETFs delivered an average return of 25.04% over one year, compared with 15.79% for gold ETFs. Over three years, silver ETFs generated average returns of 35.96%, against 30.58% for gold ETFs.

However, the recent performance paints a different picture. Over three months, gold ETFs declined 3.86%, while silver ETFs fell 17.04%. This highlights the sharper price fluctuations inves...