copper prices

ISHARES MSCI CHILE INVESTABLE MARKET INDEX FUND $34.42 (New York symbol ECH; buy or sell through brokers) is an ETF that aims to track the MSCI Chile Investable Market Index, which consists of stocks that mainly trade on the Santiago Stock Exchange. The fund’s largest holdings are Enersis SA (electricity), 10.3%; Empresa Nacional de Electricidad (electricity), 9.0%; Empresas Copec SA (conglomerate), 7.9%; S.A.C.I. Falabella (retail), 6.5%; Banco Santander Chile (banking), 5.8%; Cencosud SA (retailer), 5.8%; Empresas CMPC (pulp and paper), 4.7%; Colbun SA (utility), 4.6%; and Banco de Chile, 4.3%. The ETF’s industry breakdown consists of Utilities, 31.9%; Financials, 19.5%; Materials, 13.0%; Consumer Staples, 9.7%; Energy, 8.2%; Consumer Discretionary, 8.0%; Industrials, 4.4%; Telecommunication services, 2.5%; and Information Technology, 2.1%....

We think conservative investors could hold up to 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. One way to do that is to buy carefully chosen exchange traded funds (ETFs) that have an overseas focus. The best ETFs offer very low management fees and well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of highquality stocks. Here’s a look at four international ETFs we see as buys, and two we feel you should hang on to:...

GLOBAL X COPPER MINERS ETF $10.06 (New York symbol COPX; buy or sell through brokers; www.globalxfunds.com) tracks the Solactive Global Copper Miners Index, which includes 20 to 40 international companies that mine, refine or explore for copper. Germany-based Structured Solutions AG created this index. Canadian firms make up 38.8% of the ETF’s holdings. It also includes companies based in Australia (15.6%), Mexico (5.5%), Peru (5.4%) and Poland (5.0%). The fund’s MER is 0.65%. Its top holdings are Southern Copper at 6.9%; Oz Minerals, 6.8%; CST Mining Group, 6.4%; Kaz Minerals plc, 5.9%; Sandfire Resources, 5.9%; Grupo Mexico, 5.7%; Glencore plc, 5.4%; Turquoise Hill, 5.4%; Lundin Mining, 5.4%; Jiangxi Copper, 5.4%; Copper Mountain Mining, 5.3%; and Antofagasta plc, 4.6%....

GLOBAL X COPPER MINERS ETF $10.06 (New York symbol COPX; buy or sell through brokers; www.globalxfunds.com) tracks the Solactive Global Copper Miners Index, which includes 20 to 40 international companies that mine, refine or explore for copper. Germany-based Structured Solutions AG created this index. Canadian firms make up 38.8% of the ETF’s holdings. It also includes companies based in Australia (15.6%), Mexico (5.5%), Peru (5.4%) and Poland (5.0%). The fund’s MER is 0.65%. Its top holdings are Southern Copper at 6.9%; Oz Minerals, 6.8%; CST Mining Group, 6.4%; Kaz Minerals plc, 5.9%; Sandfire Resources, 5.9%; Grupo Mexico, 5.7%; Glencore plc, 5.4%; Turquoise Hill, 5.4%; Lundin Mining, 5.4%; Jiangxi Copper, 5.4%; Copper Mountain Mining, 5.3%; and Antofagasta plc, 4.6%....

With a new U.S. mine boosting production, Newmont Mining adapts to lower gold and copper prices by focusing on quality and cost-cutting

ISHARES MSCI CHILE INVESTABLE MARKET INDEX FUND $31.91 (New York symbol ECH; buy or sell through brokers) is an ETF that aims to track the MSCI Chile Investable Market Index, which consists of stocks that mainly trade on the Santiago Stock Exchange.

The fund’s largest holdings are Enersis SA (electricity), 10.1%; Empresas Copec SA (conglomerate), 8.1%; Empresa Nacional de Electricidad (electricity), 8.1%; S.A.C.I. Falabella (retail), 6.1%; Banco Santander Chile (banking), 5.9%; Empresas CMPC (pulp and paper), 5.4%; Cencosud SA (retailer), 5.3%; Colbun SA (utility), 4.4%; and Banco de Chile, 4.2%.

The ETF’s industry breakdown consists of Utilities, 31.2%; Financials, 19.7%; Materials, 13.7%; Consumer Staples, 9.6%; Energy, 8.4%; Consumer Discretionary, 7.4%; Industrials, 5.3%; Telecommunications, 2.5%; and Information Technology, 1.7%.

...

The outlook for oil and other commodities remains weak, but we still feel that most investors should devote 10% to 15% of their portfolios to resource stocks. But only buy these or any stocks if you are prepared to hold them for at least the next several years. To further cut your risk, you should focus on companies with high-quality reserves, like the three we analyze below. All three are also reducing their costs, which puts them in a better position to profit when prices recover. However, not all of them are buys right now. CHEVRON CORP. $93 (New York symbol CVX; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $176.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.3; Dividend yield: 4.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.chevron.com) produced an average of 2.54 million barrels of oil a day (including natural gas) in the three months ended September 30, 2015. That’s down 1.1% from 2.57 million barrels a day a year earlier....

NEWMONT MINING CORP. $19 (New York symbol NEM; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 529.1 million; Market cap: $10.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.2; Dividend yield: 0.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.newmont.com) is one of the world’s largest gold and copper producers, with major mines in the U.S., Peru, Suriname, Australia, Ghana and Indonesia. In August 2015, Newmont paid $821 million for the Cripple Creek & Victor mine in Colorado. This project will produce 350,000 to 400,000 ounces of gold a year once the company completes the mine’s current expansion in 2016. The Cripple Creek acquisition helped increase Newmont’s gold production by 16.1% in the three months ended September 30, 2015, to 1.34 million ounces from 1.15 million ounces a year earlier. Copper output surged 269.2% on higher ore grades at the Batu Hijau mine in Indonesia....

We think conservative investors could hold up to 10% of their portfolios in foreign stocks. One way to do that is to buy carefully chosen exchange traded funds (ETFs) that have an overseas focus. The best ETFs offer very low management fees and well-diversified, tax-efficient portfolios of highquality stocks....

The many industrial uses of copper give copper stocks an advantage over gold and other precious metal stocks.