The Australian resources sector has generated a return of 40 per cent over the past year, driven mainly by the performance of copper and gold over this period.
An analysis of 42 Australian listed materials companies revealed copper made up 34.4 per cent of earnings in the sector for the 2026 financial year measured on the Australian Securities Exchange-listed, free-float share of earnings. Iron ore and gold were other significant contributors, accounting for 33.4 per cent and 19.7 per cent respectively.
The result means copper and gold combined are now responsible for about 54 per cent of Australian materials sector earnings.
The performance of copper comes despite the absence of a Chinese development boom. It suggests the returns the commodity has delivered are now more dependent on structural demand from artificial intelligence (AI), electrification and the global energy transition and less beholden to Chinese property and infrastructure investment.
“That is a significant change in the composition of the market,” Betashares investment strategist Tom Wickenden noted.
“The recent resources rally has been driven by more than just iron ore. Copper is benefiting from the enormous material requirements of AI data centres, grid investment and electrification, while gold producers have earned through a much higher gold price environment than in previous years.
“This is a positive development for Australian investors because it means the market has greater exposure to structural global growth themes and less reliance on a single country’s property cycle.
“That does not mean the sector is immune to commodity-price volatility, but it does mean the Australian market is becoming more diverse, with copper and gold providing important sources of earnings growth alongside the traditional iron ore exposure.”
Exchange-traded funds have been very popular among investors recently, with critical minerals and energy-transition metal attracting nearly $436 million in year-to-date net flows and growing to around $1.76 billion in funds under management by the end of August 2026.