10 Best Copper Stocks to Buy in 2022

Are you in search of the best copper stocks? Copper has become more popular again, especially in the industrial sector. 

From 2001 to 2022, its value will increase by about five times. It is a valuable metal used in building homes, electronics, electrical conductivity, cars, and preventing infections. 

Copper will benefit from the push toward electric cars and, renewable energy sources, better infection control. This is all because of the coronavirus pandemic and a rise in economic activity worldwide.

Right through this guide, we will discuss the best copper stocks to buy in 2022 and why you should invest in copper stocks. 

How are copper stocks?

Copper stocks give investors a chance to put their money into companies that work in the copper business.

Thus, copper mines and refineries that do business in Canada and worldwide can be among these companies. Copper is not as attractive as gold in terms of its biological value, but it is more useful in making things and making technology.

Why should you invest in copper stock?

Copper is a valuable commodity, and many good reasons exist to invest in it. For example, investors like commodities because they are a way to protect against inflation. 

Here are a few important reasons why you should buy copper right now.

1. Prepare for rising prices.

All investors worry about the risk of inflation. Inflation happens when money loses value over time.

When this happens, the prices of essential goods go up, which is good for people who invest in commodities. So, investing in copper is yet a way to protect from inflation.

2. Spread out your investments

Copper is a good example of a commodity that can be bought and sold. Diversifying the assets in your investment portfolio protects you from the risk of losing money on a single purchase. 

Copper is a metal that can be used in many ways and is popular worldwide. Adding copper to your portfolio reduces the risk of other assets not doing as well.

3. The need for power

Wiring sends electricity from one place to another, and copper is used to making wiring. Electricity is needed to create and transmit power, which is the most important part of modern technology. Copper investments help the idea that the need for electricity will grow.

List of best copper stocks to buy now

1. BHP Group

BHP Group is based in Australia, the world's largest producer of natural resources. It digs for copper, iron ore, nickel, potash, and metallurgical coal. 

This company also made a lot of oil and natural gas, but in 2022, it merged with Woodside Petroleum (ASX: WPL).

BHP runs a copper mine in Australia and a few in Chile. In 2021, its business made 1.6 million tonnes of copper. It is spending a lot of money to increase its copper production to keep up with rising demand.

At the end of 2020, BHP finished expanding its Spence copper mine in the desert of Chile. The project will increase production by 185,000 metric tonnes per year for the next ten years and add 50 years to the mine's life. 

BHP has also established several long-term partnerships for exploration and early-stage growth opportunities. Its main purpose was to meet the expected rise in demand for copper in the coming years.

Copper production is going up, so the company should be able to pay out more dividends. BHP wants to pay out at least 50% of its cash flow as dividends. It often gives out extra dividends and buys back shares with the money it has left over.

2. Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan is one of the biggest copper companies that sell shares to the public. It also makes gold and molybdenum, which are used to make high-strength steel alloys.

The Grasberg mine in Indonesia is one of the world's largest sources of copper and gold. This company is the crown jewel of Freeport's business. Freeport runs big mines in Arizona and Peru as well. In 2021, the company made 3.8 million pounds of copper.

By the end of 2021, Freeport had brought underground mining at Grasberg up to speed. The project made it possible to produce 1.5 million pounds of copper and 1.6 million ounces of gold yearly. 

The company has several other ways to grow in the long term, such as expanding in Arizona and Chile.

3. The Teck Resources

Teck Resources is basically a Canadian mining company that does many different things. It makes copper, zinc, and coal used to make steel. Plus, it also has investments in projects to mine oil sands.

In 2021, copper made up 34% of Teck's gross profit. Last year, the company got its copper from four mines in Canada and South America and made 287,300 metric tonnes of it.

Teck Resource plans to lead the industry in copper production growth in the coming years. By 2023, it should have made more than twice as much as it does now. 

Its Quebrada Blanca Phase 2 (QB2) project in northern Chile, which is one of the largest copper sources in the world, is the main reason for this. The plan is to start working on the project in the second half of 2022.

In addition to QB2, Teck is working on several other copper growth projects that will help meet the world's future copper needs. It could make five times as much copper over the next ten years if it keeps building up its mining capacity.

4. Southern Copper 

Southern Copper is one of the world's largest companies that makes copper in many ways. The company runs copper mines in Mexico and Peru. 

Grupo Mexico (OTC: GMBXF), a group of companies that works in mining, transportation, and infrastructure, owns most of the company.

Southern Copper is the fifth largest producer of copper in the world right now. It also has the largest copper reserves, giving it much room to grow its copper production.

As old reserves run out, the company expects its production to go down shortly. But production should stop falling after 2022. In the long run, Southern Copper's output will grow a lot. By 2030, it plans to have produced 73% more than it did in 2020. 

The company has given the green light to several large-scale expansion projects that should help copper grow in the long run. It plans to invest an average of $1.9 billion a year over the next ten years to increase the amount of copper it makes.

5. Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a global mining company based in the United Kingdom. It makes aluminium, copper, iron ore, uranium, diamonds, gold, industrial minerals, and iron ore. 

The company also makes borates, lithium, salt, and titanium dioxide, all basic materials.

Rio Tinto offered to buy the Turquoise Hill shares it doesn't already own for $2.7 billion in cash at the beginning of 2022. This would give Rio Tinto full control over the underground mining project and give it full ownership of the shares. 

With this purchase, it could make a lot more copper. By 2030, Oyu Tolgoi will be the fourth biggest copper mine in the world.

Rio Tinto is planning to grow through several copper-related projects, such as Resolution Copper in the U.S. and Wine in Australia. The Wine, copper, and gold resource were available in 2020. 

6. Glencore

Glencore is one of the world's biggest and most well-known natural resource companies. It is present in 35 countries on six continents. 

Glencore is the biggest trader of commodities and has the most revenue of any mining company in the world. The company runs copper mining projects in Australia, Africa, and South America, which are all important mining areas.

The company also has a big presence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where it mines copper and cobalt at the Katanga and Mutanda mines. 

According to the company's production details, the company's copper production dropped by 5% to 1.19 million tonnes in 2021!

The Mopani sale, lower copper grades at Antapaccay, and lower copper by-products from the company's old zinc and nickel mines were all to blame for the drop. The company thinks it will sell 1.15 million tonnes of copper in 2022, which is the next fiscal year.

7. Glencore PLC (GLNCY)

Copper is a big part of Glencore's income, and the Swiss company also makes metallurgical or coking coal. This coal is used to make steel and sells iron ore, which is also accessible to produce steel from other companies. 

It also helps with logistics and financing. Even though the company cut its copper production forecast for 2022 in April, its marketing department was doing well despite the volatility of commodities. 

When Glencore reports again, investors might want to see if it changes its production guidance because copper prices are falling. But since so many commodities are being sold, it seems likely that its trading group will continue to do well. 

Its shares have done better than the market so far this year, with a 3.4% gain through July 7.

8. Steel Dynamics (STUD)

Steel Dynamics is the only stock on this list that has done well this year. Through July 7, its shares have gone up 7.3%. Last month, the company said it expected record earnings for the second quarter. 

It was so sure of itself that it said it had bought back nearly $400 million worth of shares from April 1 to June 10. "Even though prices for hot roll coil steel were going down, steel demand stayed strong during the second quarter," the company said. 

"The automotive, construction and industrial sectors led the way, and energy kept improving." The company has a segment that makes rolls of steel sheets and bar and rail products. 

It also has a segment that makes structural steel for buildings and a component that collects and processes scrap metal.

9. Nucor Corporation (NUE)

Nucor, another company that makes steel and uses scrap as its main raw material, also plans to make a record amount of money in the second quarter. 

Nucor has also been buying back its shares, just like Steel Dynamics. "Second-quarter earnings will be driven by increased profitability in the steel products segment, which continues to benefit from strong demand in nonresidential construction markets," the company said. 

"Also, the steel mills segment expects to make more money, mostly because our bar, sheet, and plate mills are making more money." 

Nucor also thinks that its raw materials segment will make more money in the second quarter because "selling prices for raw materials are relatively higher." As of July 7, NUE shares are down 3.2% this year.

10. Lundin Mining Corp

Lundin Mining started in 1994 and has its main office in Toronto, Ontario. The Toronto Stock Exchange is where the stock is about to trade.

The company runs six copper mines in the United States, Sweden, Portugal, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina.

Copper makes up 69% of Lundin's portfolio of resources. Gold, nickel, zing, and other precious metals are available to make the other parts. The amount of copper that Lundin will make each year is expected to be between 258,000 and 282,000 tonnes.

How can you invest in copper stocks? Ways to follow

This step-by-step guide will help you get started on your journey. Follow along as you read, and you'll be ready to invest.

1. Choose a plan for your investments. Before investing, you should consider how you want to invest. Do you want to be an active investor or a passive investor? This is the most important thing to consider when deciding how much risk you are willing to take.

2. Find out what you can. Then you'll need to research the copper market and decide how you want to invest. We have shown you how to invest in copper in many different ways further down this page.

3. Set a budget. Once you know how much risk you are willing to take, you need to set a budget for investing in copper. You should only take risks you can pay for to lose.

4. Choose between short-term and long-term goals. You have financial goals, so you must determine if copper is a good short-term or long-term investment for your portfolio. If you want to look at things in the short term, you should do technical analysis. If you're going to look at things for a long time, you should do fundamental research.

5. Find a place to put your money. Not all brokers will let you buy copper as a commodity. It would help if you ensured that the broker you're interested in lets you invest in copper.

When is it a good idea to buy copper?

Copper is a good investment when prices are going up. As was said on this page, people put their money into copper to protect themselves from inflation. So, when the inflation rate increases, it's a good time to buy copper.

We've gone over the things that affect the copper market. If you're thinking about adding copper to your portfolio, it's a good idea to keep up with these things. 

For example, if the price of oil went up, the cost of energy would go up, which in turn makes the price of copper would go up.

Ways to invest your money in copper

There are many ways to put money away. How you should go about it will depend on your budget and how much you know about investing. We've listed the best ways to invest in copper and told you what each has to offer.

1. Invest in copper exchange-traded funds (ETFs)

You can also buy shares in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that track the performance of the metals industry or even the futures price of copper. Most of the time, the easiest way for new investors to start investing in copper is to buy shares in copper ETFs. 

The Global X Copper Miners ETF (COPX), the iShares Russell 1000 ETF (IWB), and the United States Copper Index Fund are all good examples of copper ETFs (CPER).

2. Invest in copper mutual funds

Copper mutual funds are like ETFs, but managers buy and sell shares based on what they know in a managed fund. Some mutual funds focus on metals in particular. 

For example, you can invest in mutual funds that hold stocks of companies that mine copper, or you can invest in mutual funds that focus on natural resources and have copper miners as part of their portfolio.

3. Invest in copper futures

Copper futures can be a great bet for an investor who has done this before. Copper futures are contracts that let you buy or sell copper. They require you to buy or sell a certain amount of copper before a certain date. 

To invest in futures, you need to know a lot about how the market works and how volatile it is, so a lot of experience in the market is important.

Best copper stocks: final thoughts

The price of copper is one of the first signs that the economy is growing. The cost of copper, set by the free market, will show that the world economy is improving. 

Due to the higher demand for copper, investors who want to diversify their portfolios through commodities and futures have a chance.