BHPDiversified major
BHP Group
HQ: Australia
The world's largest listed miner. Copper is its main growth engine alongside iron ore.
Price
$87
Mkt cap
$221B
1 yr
+56.8%
YTD
+40.6%
Investment thesis
Power & grid · Construction & facilities · Backup & storage
Diversified majors & broad baskets
The ballast: global miners and broad ETFs that own a bit of everything.
Large diversified miners own much of the world's copper growth along with iron ore and other bulk commodities. They are less exciting but more resilient: dividends, balance sheets and many assets spread the risk.
This bucket is the anchor for a critical-minerals allocation. It gives liquidity and income while the higher-risk buckets carry the scarcity bet.
Underlying minerals
What drives the majors bucket
Supply status and the main constraint for each mineral, from its sourced profile in the database.
29
Cu
Copper
Deficitrisk 48 · China 8%IEA projects a ~25% supply gap by 2035; prices hit a record near $14,780/t in Sep 2026 as Chile output fell 6.6% in H1 2026 and DR Congo banned concentrate exports.
26
Fe
High-purity Iron
Adequaterisk 21 · China 11%Steel for data-center buildings, transformers and transmission towers.
13
Al
Aluminum
Watchrisk 56 · China 61%Base-metal prices including aluminium rose about one-third between Jan 2025 and Apr 2026; Middle East exports (≈20% of US supply) were disrupted.
28
Ni
Nickel
Watchrisk 43 · China 3%IEA sees only a slight supply gap in its base case, but virtually all recent supply growth has come from one country (Indonesia).
78
Pt
Platinum
Watchrisk 39 · China 0%South Africa ~71% of mine output.
Bull case
- Majors fund the next generation of copper and lithium supply from cash flow.
- Lower volatility and dividends.
- Broad ETFs remove single-company risk.
Bear case
- Iron ore and coal dilute critical-mineral exposure.
- Majors are slow to move and sometimes overpay for acquisitions.
- Sector ETFs follow global growth more than any single mineral.
The basket
8 stocks and funds in this bucket
Grouped from diversified majors to developers and funds. Market data as of October 6, 2026.
RIODiversified major
Rio Tinto
HQ: United Kingdom
Iron-ore major that has built out copper, aluminum and, since buying Arcadium, lithium.
Price
$95.89
Mkt cap
$156B
1 yr
+45.0%
YTD
+16.6%
GLEN.LDiversified major
Glencore
HQ: Switzerland
Swiss miner-trader with large copper and cobalt output in the DRC and a global trading arm. It is diversified, but battery and grid metals are central.
Price
573.5p
Mkt cap
$89B
1 yr
+64.9%
YTD
+45.4%
VALEDiversified major
Vale
HQ: Brazil
Brazilian iron-ore giant whose base-metals unit is a top nickel producer and growing copper miner.
Price
$14.08
Mkt cap
$60B
1 yr
+27.9%
YTD
+6.4%
AAL.LDiversified major
Anglo American
HQ: United Kingdom
London-listed miner reshaping itself around copper, with platinum-group metals and iron ore.
Price
4,152p
Mkt cap
$59B
1 yr
+47.6%
YTD
+37.8%
PICKETF
iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF
HQ: United States
Broad global ETF of metals and mining producers, excluding gold and silver. A diversified way to own the whole sector.
Price
$61.12
Fund size
$2.3B
1 yr
+34.5%
YTD
+16.8%
REMXETF
VanEck Rare Earth & Strategic Metals ETF
HQ: United States
ETF holding rare-earth and strategic-metal miners across lithium, rare earths, uranium and other niche metals, with significant China exposure.
Price
$63.79
Fund size
$829M
1 yr
-13.0%
YTD
-16.9%
SETMETF
Sprott Critical Materials ETF
HQ: United States
Sprott ETF spanning miners of energy-transition critical materials (lithium, uranium, copper, rare earths, nickel and more).
Price
$29.76
Fund size
$80M
1 yr
+13.9%
YTD
-1.2%
Compare
Side-by-side
| Company / fund | Minerals | Type | HQ | 12 mo | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BHP | BHP Group | CuFeKNi | Diversified major | AU | $221B | +56.8% | +40.6% | |
| RIO | Rio Tinto | FeCuAlLi | Diversified major | GB | $156B | +45.0% | +16.6% | |
| GLEN.L | Glencore | CuCoNiZn | Diversified major | CH | $89B | +64.9% | +45.4% | |
| VALE | Vale | FeNiCu | Diversified major | BR | $60B | +27.9% | +6.4% | |
| AAL.L | Anglo American | CuFePtPd | Diversified major | GB | $59B | +47.6% | +37.8% | |
| PICK | iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF | CuFeAl | ETF | US | $2.3B | +34.5% | +16.8% | |
| REMX | VanEck Rare Earth & Strategic Metals ETF | NdLiW | ETF | US | $829M | -13.0% | -16.9% | |
| SETM | Sprott Critical Materials ETF | LiUCuNd | ETF | US | $80M | +13.9% | -1.2% |
8 of 8 shown. Size is market cap for companies and net assets for funds, in USD.
Not investment advice. Critical-Minerals.si is an independent research site. Baskets and model allocations are illustrative frameworks for exploring exposure, not recommendations to buy or sell any security. Mining and commodity equities are volatile, and many names listed here are small, foreign-listed or pre-revenue. Do your own research and consider a licensed adviser. Market data as of the date shown; prices change constantly.