With cryptocurrencies spending most of their existence reacting to hopes and fears and stocks growing increasingly divorced from the companies they grant a stake in – as exemplified by the ballooning valuations of many firms and seemingly disjointed reactions to earnings reports – investors may seek the relative tangibility of commodities in 2025.
Indeed, commodities represent tangible goods and remain, by that very merit, subject to measurable factors such as demand, the efficacy of supply chains, and – for most so-called soft commodities – luck.
Despite this overall appeal, the first such asset worth considering in 2025 is, to a significant degree, subject to sentiment.
Picks for you
Gold
Gold has risen significantly in recent years, thanks to its sheer prominence and the economic uncertainty that has prevailed even through the latest bull market.
Traditionally, the yellow metal is seen as a way to store wealth, and given its 16.20% rise in the last 12 months to its press time price of $2,898, as well as the 2024 inflation rate in the U.S. of 2.9%, it has done its job well.
Furthermore, despite its already high cost, the commodity continues to offer a compelling bull case as it has extended beyond its mostly psychological value and found practical, industrial uses thanks to the rapid developments of modern electronics.
Simultaneously, while boosting the value proposition, such a setup could make gold more susceptible to corporate fortunes than it has historically been.
Coffee
Coffee made multiple headlines in 2024, thanks to its wild price fluctuation. The increasingly unpredictable weather is a major reason behind the volatility and why performance in 2025 is likely to be similar.
Indeed, as a soft commodity, coffee is, by its very nature, highly susceptible to growing conditions. This is made even more sensitive by the fact that it is grown in relatively few countries across the globe.
Early March reports about empty warehouses in Brazil present a strong buy case for the beans, especially since investing might help cushion some financial pain for all those who like a hot cup of joe in the mornings as the asset appreciates with the price increases.
Cocoa
Chocolate lovers’ 2025 fortunes might be no better than those who like to get energized every morning as, if the Brazilian coffee stockpiles were described as at record lows, the cocoa shortage has also gained the epithet of ‘record lows’ in February.
Such a setup – also driven in large part by cocoa’s susceptibility to weather and growth concentration in only a handful of countries – is likely to produce substantial volatility and a price rally in the commodity markets this year.
At press time on March 6, there may exist a particularly enticing opportunity to buy as cocoa fell significantly since the start of 2025, and the cash contracts are trading at $8,456 – 29.52% below their early January prices.
Uranium
Though it may feel like 1962 all over again for many, given all the talk of nuclear war, uranium has been rising and has grown increasingly promising thanks to decidedly less demagogic reasons.
Indeed, nuclear energy is once again on the rise, thanks to the staggering electricity demands of the artificial intelligence (AI) sectors, President Donald Trump’s focus on abundance, and the sheer scale of China’s reactor-building project.
Other developments and expected developments could also provide powerful tailwinds for the radioactive commodity.
While still experimental and serving more as testing grounds than practical and productive plants, there are multiple fusion reactor projects around the globe, with the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in the south of France perhaps being the most prominent.
Simultaneously, the growing concerns over the environmental impact of lithium mining paired with recent breakthroughs in China could lead to proliferation of batteries containing radioactive isotopes.
Copper
Copper, unlike the other discussed assets which are likely to yield strong gains in the relatively near future, is more of a long-term play.
Thus far, the metal has risen 22.99% in the last 12 months despite much volatility, and its contract for difference (CFD) is changing hands at $4.76.
Despite this, its price fluctuation remains somewhat unpredictable. On the one hand, copper is highly susceptible to the developing trade war, with many experts believing it likely to cause a short-term downside.
On the other hand, the commodity remains a key industrial metal for electronics with a somewhat underdeveloped supply, almost guaranteeing an eventual rally.
Featured image via Shutterstock
