The mining sector increased business confidence in the second half of 2025, up 24.5% by November 2025 to 118.2 points, according to a report by Australian social and political market research firm Roy Morgan.
With confidence up, 54.4% of mining companies say the next 12 months could either be a good or bad time to invest.
Driving the boost to confidence in the mining industry in H2 2025 have been smaller players with less than $5 million in annual revenue, Roy Morgan reports. Business confidence for this segment was only 91.3 in the six months to June 2025 and increased by 39.8pts (43.5%) to 131.1.
In contrast, confidence for larger miners with annual revenue of $5 million or more declined during this same period from 108.2 in the six months to June 2025, down by 10pts (-9.3%) to 98.2.
The outlook of junior exploration investment company Lion Selection Group (ASX:LSX) reflects these sentiments, with the firm confidence of the next phase of growth, aiming to reach between 15 and 20 assets.
The investor’s portfolio currently spans 12 Australian assets – along with one overseas residual asset – spanning from the earliest grassroots exploration stage through to near-term production.
“We’re maybe two-thirds or three-quarters of the way there,” Lion’s Managing Director Hedley Widdup tells Mining.com.au.
“From what we already have, we’ve got one which is right at the grassroots stage with extremely exciting targets, so sky’s the limit with what that could be, and it’s unlisted.
“We’ve created something which you can’t get anywhere else.
“On maturity, that goes right through to two companies which will become gold producers within the next 18 months, and they’re at the point of now rewriting to the scope that the market expects them to be.”
Preying on copper
About nine of Lion’s investments are gold-focused assets, though the company isn’t dead-set on any specific commodity in particular.
One commodity that Widdup has his eye set on is copper.
“Everybody talks about copper. We need it for everything we do,” Widdup adds.
“In 2026, we’ve seen copper push above US$13,000 per tonne. I think US$11,500 to US$12,000 was probably the magic number that if it went through there, it was in uncharted territory.
“Having got to this level now, we’re setting a precedent every single day about what an upper level price could be for someone to pay.”
According to Benchmark Minerals, copper hit its record of almost US$13,300 per tonne on 5 January 2026 on the London Metals Exchange.
Trading Economics reports copper to have a spot price of US$5.80 per pound as of 13 February, representing a 25.45% increase for this year over year.
While copper demand is reaching new highs, the Department of Industry, Science and Resources’ (DISR) December 2025 Resources and Energy Quarterly forecasts copper output from Australian mines to decrease by as much as 3% in the 2026-27 year following unchanged output.
Lower company guidance is expected to impact copper mines in the next financial year, as reported by Mining.com.au.
Similar to outputs, copper exports also decreased in the first nine months of 2025, with the town of Boddington in Western Australia dropping 29% over this period, and Queensland exports down 10%.
Copper is a highly conductive and malleable base metal, mainly used in electric generators, household and car electrical wiring, and appliance wiring.
Founded in 1997, Lion Selection Group is focused on paying sustainable dividends from surplus investment proceeds, while balancing investment requirements with market conditions and capital growth.
The investment group, which has a market capitalisation of $146.11 million, is attending the RIU Explorers Conference in Fremantle, Western Australia being held from 17-19 February. Mining.com.au is an official media partner of this year’s event.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: iStock & True North Copper
