Glencore

Swiss mining, energy and trading company Glencore has its fingers in many commodity pies—over 60, in fact, with operations in over 35 countries. As a miner, the most significant are copper (worth $18.1 billion in 2023), Zinc ($12.6 billion) and coal ($16.5 billion), though the company also covers gold, silver, cobalt, nickel and aluminum, alongside oil refineries. Glencore doesn’t just produce commodities in enormous quantities; its marketing and trading division, which leans more heavily towards oil, is even larger. The idea is that doing both makes it quicker to adjust to changes in global supply and demand, though it also spreads the risk from the commodities cycle. Glencore is based in Baar, Switzerland, with mining operations mainly in Australia, South America and South Africa.