Written by Bryan Lutz, Editor at Dollarcollapse.com:
Copper set a record above $14,500 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange on September 7.
The metal goes into electrical grids, data centres, electric vehicles, weapons systems and every major electrification project on the books. The International Energy Agency expects refined copper demand to rise from about 27 million tonnes in 2024 to 33 million tonnes by 2035. Production from existing and announced mines, by the same agency’s count, peaks in the late 2020s and falls below 19 million tonnes by 2035.
That makes a the long-term case for investment in copper, but it doesn’t make copper a risk-free trade.
Proposed US tariffs on refined copper have added a second layer to the price. The Commerce Department has floated a 15% duty from 2027, rising to 30% in 2028, and traders have piled metal into US warehouses ahead of it: COMEX stocks hit a record 675,000 tonnes in late August. If Washington drops the tariff, some of that support goes with it.
The DollarCollapse Playbook offers three rules for this market. Favour royalty companies for the best risk-adjusted exposure (Move 11). Use established producers as part of inflation-resistant equity (Move 13). Then spread mining risk across several political jurisdictions (Move 10).
Here are five US-listed stocks that fit different parts of that strategy:
1. Royal Gold: Gold Royalties with Copper to Kick Up Profits
Royal Gold (NASDAQ: RGLD) is not a pure copper company. Gold produced 76% of second-quarter revenue and copper 8%. But its October 2025 purchase of Sandstorm Gold and Horizon Copper brought royalties and streams on copper mines in Canada, Peru, Brazil, Chile and Türkiye.
Royal Gold does not operate any of them. It owns a share of their production or revenue, which means it collects on higher metal prices without paying for construction, labour or cost overruns.
Its adjusted EBITDA margin was 83% in the second quarter, and management expects to repay the debt from the acquisitions by the end of 2026. For Playbook readers, Royal Gold is the conservative anchor: copper upside inside a diversified precious-metals business.
Here is what Royal Gold sells:
2. Elemental Royalty: High Exposure to Copper for a Royalty Company
Elemental Royalty (NASDAQ: ELE) offers more direct copper exposure. Copper-linked royalties produced roughly 37% of second-quarter revenue.
The two that matter are Caserones in Chile and Timok in Serbia. Smaller royalties on projects in Peru, Arizona and Sweden add future exposure. Elemental has no debt and $74 million in cash, a stronger balance sheet than most small mining companies.
The risks are higher than at Royal Gold. Elemental listed on NASDAQ only in November 2025, its top five royalties produce 80% of revenue, and Tether owns nearly 32% of the shares. Three of its five directors are connected to Tether.
Elemental fits the Playbook’s description of a smaller royalty company with more leverage but less history. It belongs in the higher-risk portion of a royalty basket, not at its centre.
3. Freeport-McMoRan: A Copper Producer with a huge percentage mined inside the US
Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) is the largest US-domiciled copper producer, with about 5% of global supply from mines in the United States, Peru, Chile and Indonesia.
Freeport expects to sell about 3.1 billion pounds of copper in 2026, and about 45% of it comes from Arizona and New Mexico. That is the right side of a tariff wall if Washington puts a duty on imported refined copper.
The biggest uncertainty is Grasberg in Indonesia. A mud rush in September 2025 killed seven workers and shut the main block cave. Freeport cut its 2026 sales guidance from 3.4 billion pounds to 3.1 billion in April, and the mine is expected to run at about 65% of capacity in the second half. Freeport must also finalize new operating terms with the Indonesian government, and the amended licence is still unsigned.
Freeport is the logical large-cap anchor for the producer side of the basket. An investor who buys it makes a combined bet on copper prices, US industrial policy and a Grasberg recovery that has already slipped once.
4. Hudbay Minerals: the North American growth story
Hudbay Minerals (NYSE: HBM) produces copper in Peru and British Columbia and gold in Manitoba. Its larger opportunity sits in Arizona.
The Copper World project is owned 70% by Hudbay and 30% by Mitsubishi(Copper is so scarce that many automobile manufactures invest directly into mining projects). On a 2023 study, the project is anticipated to produce about 85,000 tonnes of copper a year for 20 years. In June, Hudbay closed its purchase of the nearby Cactus project, which could add another 100,000 tonnes.
Management’s stated path runs from about 125,000 tonnes today to 250,000 tonnes by 2030, and to 350,000 tonnes with Cactus after the Copper World project starts producing.
However, none of that is guaranteed. Copper World still faces an air-permit appeal and a right-of-way lawsuit, the capital cost is going up by an amount the company has not yet disclosed, and first production is not expected before the second half of 2029. Hudbay offers real upside, and much of its valuation rests on projects that have not poured a tonne. Investing in a company before it is pulling metals out of the ground is extremely risky. Costs can go up, and projects can take unexpected turns, but in my opinion, this company is already producing and is set to produce more come 2029 – 2030.
5. Trekor Metals: the high-risk North American play
Trekor Metals (NYSE American: TGB), formerly Taseko Mines, offers nearly pure North American copper exposure through Gibraltar in British Columbia and Florence Copper in Arizona.
While Gibraltar is producing, Florence is the growth project. It pumps a weak acid solution through wells to dissolve copper underground, then recovers it as cathode on site, with no open pit, no mill and no tailings dam. It harvested its first cathode at the end of February 2026. It is the first new copper mine to open in the United States since 2008.
The challenge is execution. Mining.com reported on August 6:
Florence copper mine must triple output to hit Trekor target: CEO
The world’s first in-situ copper recovery (ISCR) operation, located just over 100 km southeast of Phoenix, produced 6.7 million lb. in the six months ended June 30. That included 5.2 million lb. in the second quarter, the operation’s first full three-month operating period. To reach this year’s target of 30 million to 35 million pounds, Florence must deliver another 23.3 million to 28.3 million pounds.
Trekor also carries roughly US$420 million of net debt, including US$500 million of senior secured notes due 2030, and the shares have risen about 167% in a year.
This is the smallest and most speculative company in the group. If Florence reaches full production and its costs fall as planned, the payoff could be large. If the ramp-up disappoints or copper retreats, the debt is what the market will price first. Debt can be a tell-tale sign of market risk for a copper mining company, but the price of copper is rising as well as deficits.
Build a basket, not a single bet
Each of the five stocks above are meant to do different jobs. It’s your choice, you can stay away from the risk and keep the top three(it depends which move you are looking at in the Playbook), but here’s the rundown anyway. Royal Gold is a solid foundation. Elemental adds copper through the royalty model. Freeport is the large producer, Hudbay the development-stage growth, and Trekor the most direct North American exposure with the highest operating and balance-sheet risk.
That structure follows the DollarCollapse Playbook:
- Start with quality
- Diversify across business models and jurisdictions
- And keep the speculative position smallest.
Copper may be in the early years of a long bull market, but even the right commodity can be owned the wrong way. Our goal shouldn’t be to find one perfect copper stock. It is to build exposure that survives when mines, governments, costs and markets refuse to follow the expectations of investors. In other words, contrarian…
Take care.
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This article is for educational purposes only and is not individualized investment advice. Prices and company data are current to September 9, 2026.
