How to profit from the scramble for metals and minerals

Copper and other metals will be vital in the transition to cleaner technologies and artificial intelligence. Soaring demand is pushing prices up – investors should buy in now

Copper bars 1000 grams
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Two of the biggest trends in technology right now are the rise of “clean tech” – that is, technology designed to lower carbon emissions and other pollutants, especially from electric vehicles (EVs) – and AI. As well as disrupting a score of industries, these trends have also given a massive boost to the demand for key metals and minerals. Rising geopolitical tensions between the US and China, and the prospect of “resource nationalism”, have also affected the market. Both factors could combine to create a “supercycle” in the metals market – “a phase of long-term price increases far beyond normal fluctuations”, as Lale Akoner, a global market analyst at eToro, explains. Here’s what you need to know about the global scramble for metals and minerals and how to take advantage of it.

How to take advantage of the metal supercycle

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Dr Matthew Partridge
Shares editor, MoneyWeek

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.

He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.

Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.

As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.

Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri