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Commodities

Part II: Where Have All The Mining Speculators Gone?

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By James Cooper, Wednesday, 23 July 2025

Wars, geopolitical tensions, and presidential arm wrestles… This is what happens when you ignore mineral and energy supply for too long. Prepare for what comes next!

On Monday, I detailed why exploration stocks offer a speculative investment opportunity with REAL outcomes.

These are high-risk, high-reward companies critical for the global economy.

They’re finding the raw materials needed to sustain our daily lives.

Look around you…

Virtually everything is the product of mining, whether it was the steel gathered to make saws and cut the wooden desk you’re sitting at…

Or the periodic table worth of elements sitting inside your phone!

Virtually everything we touch, see or hear was directly or indirectly the product of mining.

And for that to happen, an EXPLORER had to find it!

That’s what I think separates exploration stocks from other speculative asset classes.

You see, exploration companies aren’t based on fantasy investment themes like meme coins or the metaverse.

They produce REAL outcomes that fuel modern civilisation.

But as I explained on Monday, this sector hasn’t received much love from investors for a very long time!

Starving exploration has one outcome…

Investor capital has been siphoned away from the junior mining market since about 2012.

One reason is that junior mining stocks now compete with a bunch of other speculative asset classes, like meme coins or the metaverse!

What I’d describe as ‘imaginary investment classes.’

Where speculators can now play in different arenas to ‘dream up’ potential fortunes.

But there will be consequences…

Explorers rely on this speculative capital to attract talent, technology, and fund drill programs to discover new deposits.

Yet, they’re losing out to fantasy investment themes.

The vast capital needed to discover new mines has vanished!

As an exploration geologist, I know this from first-hand experience…

While miners are basking in record profits, especially in the gold sector, explorers are still recovering from one of the most severe phases of underinvestment on record.

That’s why I think the global economy is facing an extreme reality: a prolonged phase of undersupply in the things we need MOST.

Raw materials and energy.

And we’re starting to see that play out in a big way in 2025.

Supply chains are falling apart.

Global leaders are signing multi-billion-dollar mineral deals with tiny, obscure countries.

They’re also participating in a monumental land grab from the vastly underexplored Northern Arctic to the deepest oceans…

And it’s all rooted in securing future mineral rights. So they can lay their hands on the potential mineral wealth.

Have no doubt… We’re at a colossal turning point in the global economy.

The era of fake ‘amusement’ investing is ending.

Fantasy investment themes must give way to what matters most: food, energy and shelter.

In other words, the basic ingredients supplied by the resource sector.

And when that investment capital returns, it won’t go into the BIG miners.

These guys deplete reserves; they don’t find them.

BHP, RIO, and Glencore, among others, tend to view exploration as too capital-intensive and risky, with no short-term payback.

Yet, their future hinges on resupplying their ageing mines.

That’s why capital is destined for the small explorers.

This could be the home of a major investment trend over the coming years.

And I believe riding the success of a new discovery will be one of the best ways to achieve REAL WEALTH.

Especially in an era of shortages.

That’s why I think you should focus on explorers.

Wars, geopolitical tensions, and presidential arm wrestles… This is what happens when you ignore mineral and energy supply for too long.

Scarcity creates tension. Tension creates conflict.

So, prepare for what comes next!

You can access what I believe is the best list of global exploration companies here.

In there, you’ll find a list of fifteen explorers across gold, copper, silver, zinc, rubidium, rare earths, graphite, and oil & gas.

It’s my ‘golden fifteen.’

A basket of explorers that I’ve spent years building up, researching and applying my geological due diligence towards.

This exclusive list is all you’ll need to participate in a global rush back to the explorers.

And they’re now just starting to ignite!

Until next time.

Regards,

James Cooper Signature

James Cooper,
Editor, Mining: Phase One and Diggers and Drillers

All advice is general advice and has not taken into account your personal circumstances.

Please seek independent financial advice regarding your own situation, or if in doubt about the suitability of an investment.

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James Cooper

James Cooper has been a working geologist in mines across Australia, Canada, and Africa since the early 2000s. He’s led the operations of tiny explorers through to huge producer outfits. He’s seen booms and busts firsthand and he also understands the cyclical nature of individual commodities. For example, James was right there when Barrick Gold launched an enormous $7.5 billion takeover bid for Equinox. That was the peak of the last cycle.

With his background as a geo and finance professional, he brings a unique insight and experience to Fat Tail Investment Research. He writes the broader resource-focused investing letter Diggers and Drillers and the ultra-speculative explorer-focused trading service Mining: Phase One.

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All advice is general in nature and has not taken into account your personal circumstances. Please seek independent financial advice regarding your own situation, or if in doubt about the suitability of an investment.

The value of any investment and the income derived from it can go down as well as up. Never invest more than you can afford to lose and keep in mind the ultimate risk is that you can lose whatever you’ve invested. While useful for detecting patterns, the past is not a guide to future performance. Some figures contained in our reports are forecasts and may not be a reliable indicator of future results. Any actual or potential gains in these reports may not include taxes, brokerage commissions, or associated fees.

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