Zijin Mining Warns of Geopolitical Risks Despite Record Earnings Surge

Zijin Mining Reports Record Profits but Flags Geopolitical and Resource Nationalism Risks

China’s Zijin Mining Group Co., the world’s third-largest metals producer by market value, has warned that geopolitical tensions and rising resource nationalism could challenge its overseas expansion, even as it posts record financial results.

The copper and gold giant said that “global uncertainties have become unprecedented”, citing growing competition among major powers for critical minerals.

This “high-intensity confrontation,” it warned, could weigh on future revenues, profitability, and new international projects.

Zijin has rapidly risen to become one of the world’s most influential miners, thanks largely to aggressive expansion in Africa and its focus on copper and gold.

In the first half of 2025, the company’s net income surged 54% to 23.3 billion yuan ($3.3 billion) on the back of higher output and stronger metal prices.

Its shares hit a record high in Hong Kong this week, pushing the company’s market value above $80 billion, behind only Rio Tinto and BHP Group.

Despite the upbeat results, Zijin highlighted significant risks for the mining sector, including rising costs, shifting trade flows, and growing nationalism in resource-rich countries.

It warned that political and regulatory differences across jurisdictions could disrupt construction and production at overseas mines.

Critical minerals—such as copper, vital for renewable energy and defense applications—are at the heart of intensifying global competition.

Moves by the United States to secure supply chains, including new tariffs on copper and efforts to expand access to Africa’s mineral wealth, have added to market uncertainty.

“The rollout of US tariffs on copper, combined with low global inventories, may trigger short-term volatility as trade flows are reshaped,” Zijin said.

Despite these risks, Zijin reported robust production growth. Copper output from its owned and joint-venture mines rose 9% year-on-year to 566,853 tons in the first half of 2025.

The company also noted “extremely strong demand resilience” in China, where apparent copper consumption climbed more than 10%, driven by major investments in renewable energy and electrification projects.

Meanwhile, Zijin is considering a potential spin-off of its gold business with a Hong Kong listing, which could further unlock value for investors.

While geopolitics and resource nationalism cast a shadow, Zijin’s strong financial results and continued growth in copper and gold production reinforce its standing as one of the world’s mining powerhouses.

Still, the company cautioned that the battle for critical minerals is intensifying—and that volatility may become a defining feature of global commodity markets in the years ahead.