The year of hard assets is already breaking records [Video]

Barely two weeks into 2026, global Commodity markets are validating what analysts at The Gold & Silver Club officially coined and boldly declared months ago: “2026 Will Be The Year of Hard Assets.” That phrase has now crystallized into the defining macro theme of the year. 

Across exchanges from London to Shanghai and Chicago to Dubai – a coordinated surge is underway. Industrial and precious metals alike are exploding higher as liquidity rotates aggressively out of overvalued equities and soft currencies into tangible stores of value. 

Aluminium, Copper, Nickel, Palladium and Platinum have opened the year in extraordinary form, notching a blistering sequence of multi-year and all-time record highs. 

Copper, the bellwether of global industrial demand, has exploded through psychological price barriers – trading comfortably above $13,000 per metric ton and setting fresh records in early January. This follows what was already the red metal’s best year since 2009, with prices up more than 50% in 2025 amid fears of long–term structural deficits.  

Meanwhile, Nickel – critical for batteries and stainless steel – has spiked more than 10% in single sessions, logging its largest one-day gain in years. 

Aluminium has also rallied back above key thresholds not seen since 2022. 

This broad-based rally has propelled the LMEX Index, which tracks six major base metals, to its highest level since the early 2020s.

The common catalyst? Years of underinvestment colliding with tightening supply, accelerating industrial demand and a rotation out of frothy equity valuations and softening currencies. 

Or, put more simply: money is finally flowing into the assets global investors can touch, measure and trust. 

“We are living through a once-in-a-generation opportunity,” says Lars Hansen, Head of Research at The Gold & Silver Club. “We didn’t just predict the rally – we named it. The Year of Hard Assets is only just warming up. Those positioned now stand to capitalize on the greatest wealth transfer of our lifetime.” 

This is not hyperbole. What began as tight supplies and tight positioning has turned into a global reflation trade in Commodities. Trader sentiment shows meteoric demand for metal futures, with open interest surging across multiple base-metal contracts. 

If base metals have established the narrative, precious metals are gearing up for their turn in the spotlight. 

Gold and Silver, already buoyed by geopolitical uncertainty and expectations of easing real interest rates, are now positioned for breakout runs. The Gold & Silver Club’s proprietary modelling projects Gold at $5,000 an ounce and Silver at $100 within Q1 2026 – forecasts Hansen describes as “conservative” given recent momentum. 

Goldman Sachs, UBS and Bank of America have now upgraded their 2026 precious metals forecasts, with targets skewed toward $5,500 – $5,700 for Gold and $110 – $125 for Silver under peak demand conditions. 

JPMorgan’s metals desk is the boldest, projecting $5,055 before year-end and $8,000 by 2028 – as global portfolios rebalance into tangible assets. 

The thread tying these forecasts together: the retreat from fiat-denominated paper wealth into real, physical stores of value. 

What distinguishes The Gold & Silver Club from consensus is not merely bullish positioning, but a consistent record of spotting regime shifts years before they become headline narrative. 

Over the past decade and a half, The Gold & Silver Club has built a reputation as the most accurate forecaster of Commodity prices, a record well documented across leading financial publications and institutional research reports. The firm’s proprietary models have consistently pinpointed major turning points across the Commodities sector – earning the firm recognition as a trusted authority among institutional investors and private wealth clients alike. 

Hansen’s warning is unequivocal: 

“History rewards early positioning, not hesitation. We coined the phrase Year of Hard Assets because it defines the macro reality traders must now confront. Under-allocation could prove to be the most expensive mistake of the decade.” 

As 2026 gathers momentum, one conclusion is becoming increasingly unavoidable: the Year of Hard Assets has arrived – and those waiting for confirmation risk watching the next phase of wealth creation pass them by. 

Where are prices heading next? Watch The Commodity Report now, for my latest price forecasts and predictions: