As global economies gain momentum, industrial metals and commodity-related exchange traded funds are beginning to turn around.
Industrial metals like copper, nickel, iron and steel have all rebounded in recent months as traders bet on improving global economic conditions would bolster demand for the base metals after prices hit multi-year lows.
Related: Miner ETFs Surge on Improving Metals Prices, Economic Outlook
Supporting the recent gains in base metal prices, markets saw improving data from China, the world’s largest consumer of industrial metals. However, some are beginning to doubt the sustainability of the metal market, pointing to signs of potential weakness in Chinese growth ahead.
Moreover, a strengthening U.S. dollar could weigh on commodities – the USD and commodities typically exhibit an inverse correlation as a stronger dollar makes USD-denominated assets like commodities more expensive.
[related_stories]Nevertheless, producers have been trimmed the fat, cutting production and increasing efficiency to support prices. Additionally, any further delays in a Federal Reserve rate hike would help keep pressure on the dollar and support metal prices.
“We start to look at metals prices and say this is what the markets are supposed to do: prices got too high, come back down and supply starts to tighten,” Frank Cholly, a senior market strategist at RJO Futures in Chicago, told Bloomberg. “That’s what we’re going through, and we’ve seen it through commodities across the board.”
Related: 23 Best ETFs to Track Basic Materials
Investors who are interested in following the industrial metal markets have a number of exchange traded products to choose from.
Industrial ETFs/ETNs:
- PowerShares DB Base Metals (NYSEArca: DBB)
- iPath Bloomberg Copper Subindex Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: JJC)
- ELEMENTS Rogers International Commodity Index Metals Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: RJZ)
- iPath Bloomberg Nickel Subindex Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: JJN)
- iPath Bloomberg Industrial Metals Total Return Sub-Index ETN (NYSEArca: JJM)
- ETRACS CMCI Industrial Metals Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: UBM)
- iPath Pure Beta Lead ETN (NYSEArca: LEDD)
- United States Copper Index ETF (NYSEArca: CPER)
- iPath Bloomberg Tin Subindex Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: JJT)
- iPath Bloomberg Aluminum Subindex Total ETN (NYSEArca: JJU)
- iPath Pure Beta Copper ETN (NYSEArca: CUPM)
- iPath Pure Beta Aluminum ETN (NYSEArca: FOIL)
- iPath Pure Beta Nickel ETN (NYSEArca: NINI)
- iPath Bloomberg Lead Subindex Total Return ETN (NYSEArca: LD)
- PowerShares DB Base Metals Long ETN (NYSEArca: BDG)
- iPath Pure Beta Industrial Metals ETN (NYSEArca: HEVY)
Leveraged/inverse ETNs:
- PowerShares DB Base Metals Double Long ETN (NYSEArca: BDD)
- PowerShares DB Base Metals Double Short ETN (NYSEArca: BOM)
- PowerShares DB Base Metals Short ETN (NYSEArca: BOS)
For more information on the metals, visit our industrial metals category.