If investors can agree on anything about Trump’s second term as president, it’s that there’s value in diversifying one’s portfolio away from the United States (US).
With his tariff strategy in full swing, hellbent on leveling the playing field of global trade, and counter-tariffs coming in hot, the stock market has been resounding in its pessimism about where all this will lead. The TSX has given back 6.67 per cent since Trump’s reciprocal tariffs came into play on April 2, mirroring losses from the MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index of 7.59 per cent, the EAFE index of 6.59 per cent and the S&P 500’s of 5.46 per cent.
While the global market is reacting in unison to Trump’s strong-arming, it should not be lost on readers how these tactics are being deployed by one country against the rest of the world, making it reasonable to ensure that your portfolio is exposed to non-US stocks to benefit from non-US companies’ increased incentive to collaborate.
One way to play this thesis is to increase your stake in to some of the largest mining projects outside of the US, which are positioned to benefit from more development opportunities compared to the the top economic superpower and its rapid progression towards isolationism.
Here are five properties with leadership positions in their respective commodities worth putting through their paces towards a potential allocation:
- Lithium: Albemarle’s Greenbushes operation (Australia).
- Gold: Freeport McMoRan’s Grasberg mine (Indonesia)
- Copper: BHP’s Escondida mine (Chile).
- Silver: Discovery Silver’s Cordero mine (Mexico).
- Uranium: Cameco’s McArthur River/Key Lake mine (Canada).
1. Lithium: Albemarle’s Greenbushes operation
According to Mining Technology, Albemarle‘s 49-per-cent owned Greenbushes operation in Australia was the largest lithium mine in the world by production in 2023, yielding 210,000 tons of the critical metal at the centre of EV motor and battery storage technology. With a mine-life projected until 2039, the asset occupies a differentiated position when it comes to non-US lithium exposure.
Despite Greenbushes’ unmatched output, Albemarle stock (NYSE:ALB) has been cut in half year-over-year tracking a short-term dip in EV demand and subsequent fall in lithium prices. While this fear may be warranted for those concerned about preserving capital, the company’s presence in 70 countries, proven ability to generate consistent net profits and lithium’s strong long-term tailwind support the market’s underestimation of Albemarle’s ability to generate value over a full commodity cycle.
2. Gold: Freeport-McMoRan’s Grasberg mine
According to Visual Capitalist, Freeport McMoRan‘s 48.8-per-cent owned Grasberg mine in Indonesia was the largest non-US publicly traded gold mine by production in 2021, pouring over 1.4 million ounces, adding to its over 50 million ounce total (in addition to over 30 billion pounds of copper) since inception in 1988. Backed by the largest gold reserve in the world, Grasberg’s productive life is expected to extend to 2041.
Freeport McMoRan stock (NYSE:FCX) has been relatively flat since 2021, perhaps reflecting investors’ displeasure with the company’s stagnant revenue growth and dip in net income. That said, the company’s cash flowing business and large, long-life portfolio – including U.S. assets that may benefit from Trump’s bid to streamline US critical mineral development – grant it the leverage to play offense during the ongoing tariff war while smaller competitors run for the hills.
3. Copper: BHP’s Escondida mine
According to data from Statista, BHP‘s 57.5-per-cent owned Escondida mine in Chile was the largest copper mine by capacity in 2024, coming in at 1.35 million metric tons, with a resource of 26 billion tons grading 0.53 per cent copper still to be exploited. Management expects the mine to remain productive through 2079.
BHP stock (NYSE:BHP) has lost 22 per cent year-over-year and has gained only 26 per cent since 2020, largely driven by a decrease in net profits over the past three years as rising inflation cut into commodity margins. But if we cast our gaze over the long term, we see that, despite lower net income, the company still generates billion of it every year thanks to globally diversified production, which also includes coal, iron ore, nickel and potash.
BHP is a key pillar of global industry and an obvious consideration to capitalize on both US nationalism and the international cooperation emerging from it.
4. Silver: Discovery Silver’s Cordero mine
Returning once more to Visual Capitalist, Discovery Silver‘s feasibility-stage Cordero project in Mexico – the earliest-stage project in this article – ranked as the largest undeveloped silver project in the world in 2023. It houses an estimated 266 million ounces in reserves (since expanded to 302 million as per Q4 2024).
At the price per ounce of US$32.14 as of April 11, Cordero contains over US$9.7 billion (C$13.4 billion) in the ground, over 14 times the company’s market capitalization of approximately C$935 million, suggesting significant unrecognized value and the potential for exponential returns contingent on successful ongoing development. Management expects to break ground on mine construction by the end of 2025.
Diversified by the recent acquisition of Newmont’s Porcupine gold complex in Ontario, onboarding production of almost 300,000 ounces per year over the next decade, the company believes it is on a path to profitable precious metal production.
The market overwhelmingly agrees, with investors in Discovery Silver stock (TSX:DSV) enjoying a 161.80 per cent return year-over-year and 497.44 per cent return since 2020.
5. Uranium: Cameco’s McArthur River/Key Lake mine
The McArthur River/Key Lake mine and mill in Saskatchewan, majority owner Cameco proudly declares on its official website, is the world’s largest high-grade uranium property.
Production, ongoing since 1983, has surpassed 500 million pounds U3O8, with Cameco still entitled to 265.6 million pounds in estimated proven and probable reserves over a mine life projected until 2043.
Cameco’s portfolio also includes a quartet of high-conviction exploration projects and the producing Cigar Lake property, also in Saskatchewan, which has yielded over 150 million pounds U3O8 since 2014 and still houses over 100 million pounds in untapped reserves.
With a proven management team that has delivered positive net income in four out of the past five fiscal years, and a target commodity bolstered by expected generational demand, Cameco is highly likely to have a seat at the table when it comes to global uranium market growth.
Cameco stock (TSX:CCO), though sitting at a 17.51 per cent loss year-over-year, has registered gains of 338 per cent since 2020 and over 1,000 per cent since 1995.
Regardless of which side of the bed Trump wakes up on tomorrow, it’s a safe bet to suppose that he won’t play nice, because he doesn’t consider any international relation to be sacred. This leaves the rest of the world at an advantage, incentivizing non-US industry participants to extend the perennial olive branch and set foundations for long-term value creation.
By investing in the world’s largest mining projects, readers can harness this advantage from the earliest phase in the supply chain and benefit from commodities with growing global markets.
Join the discussion: Find out what everybody’s saying about this selection of the world’s largest mining projects on the Albemarle Corp., Freeport-McMoRan Inc., BHP Group Ltd., Discovery Silver Corp. and Cameco Corp. Bullboards and check out the rest of Stockhouse’s stock forums and message boards.
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(Top photo: Adobe Stock)
