Russia.

There are many raw materials, also called natural resources, commodities or minerals, far more than 10. The US lists 60 critical minerals, the EU 34. These are 10 very important ones, in no particular order: gold, copper, uranium, silver, rare-earth magnets, gallium, lithium, cobalt, yttrium and graphite. Don't underestimate water and oil. They are just as important, so I describe each of them separately. These 10 are inside your car, your phone, solar panels, wind turbines, power grids, data centers, chips, humanoid robots, rockets and missiles. The real power is not who digs them up. It is who refines them, and that is mostly China. Who controls what: • Gold: money without a government. China, Russia and Australia mine the most. • Copper: carries electricity. Chile, DR Congo and Peru mine it. China refines about 45%. • Uranium: fuels nuclear power. Kazakhstan, Canada and Namibia mine nearly 75%. • Silver: the best conductor. Mexico, Peru and China lead. • Rare-earth magnets: drive electric cars, robots and fighter jets. China mines about 70% of rare earths. • Gallium: high-power chips and radar. China produces 99%. • Lithium: batteries. Australia, China and Chile lead, Zimbabwe is rising. • Cobalt: batteries and jet engines. DR Congo mines nearly 3 of every 4 tons. Battery makers are engineering cobalt out of batteries before 2030. That's why it moves out of the top 10 after 2030. • Yttrium: jet engines and lasers. China and Myanmar. • Graphite: the other half of every battery. China mines nearly 4 of every 5 tons, Madagascar, Tanzania and Brazil follow. Some countries are very rich in raw materials, others have almost none. Ranked by the value of all their natural resources, Russia is the richest country on the planet: $75.7 trillion in a 2012 valuation, ahead of the US, Saudi Arabia, Canada and Iran. Beyond this answer: • Water: my FAQ on why water is becoming the world's most strategic resource. • Oil: my OIL 2075 prediction card. • Countries: my FAQ on the top 10 richest countries in natural resources.

Russia ranked number 1 in a 2012 natural-resource valuation, with an estimated $75.7 trillion, about $31 trillion more than the United States. Saudi Arabia, Canada and Iran completed the top 5. The study estimated the value of 10 resource categories, including oil, gas, coal, timber, gold and uranium, using prices available at the time. Forget GDP. And Russia's biggest treasure in that ranking was not oil. It was timber, valued at $28.4 trillion. The world's top 10 in the 2012 study: 1. Russia: $75.7 trillion. Timber, natural gas, oil. 2. United States: $45 trillion. Coal, timber, natural gas. 3. Saudi Arabia: $34.4 trillion. Oil, natural gas. 4. Canada: $33.2 trillion. Oil, timber. 5. Iran: $27.3 trillion. Oil, natural gas. 6. China: $23 trillion. Coal, timber. 7. Brazil: $21.8 trillion. Timber, iron ore, gold, uranium. 8. Australia: $19.9 trillion. Gold, uranium, iron ore, coal, copper, timber. 9. Iraq: $15.9 trillion. Oil, natural gas, phosphate. 10. Venezuela: $14.3 trillion. Oil, natural gas. Important: These figures come from a 24/7 Wall St. analysis published in April 2012 and later reproduced by Statista. They are not 2026 valuations. They estimate gross resource values at historical prices, without deducting extraction costs. The timber calculation assumes all trees could be harvested and sold. DR Congo is sometimes quoted at $24 trillion in untapped minerals, but that estimate uses a different methodology and cannot be directly compared. My final thought: Owning the mine is potential. Owning the refinery is power. Raw materials, natural resources, commodities, minerals, critical minerals and rare earths: see my top 10 raw materials, my OIL 2075 prediction card and the top 10 richest countries in natural resources.

Gold is money without a government. No central bank can print more of it. For thousands of years, gold has served as a store of value. Today, governments and investors hold it against currency risk, inflation, and geopolitical shocks. In 2025, the world mined about 3,300 metric tons, according to the USGS. China led with 380, followed by Russia with 310 and Australia with 280. Ghana, Africa's largest producer, mined about 150. But the real gold rush is inside central banks. In 2025, central banks bought a net 863 metric tons, according to the World Gold Council. Poland led with 102 tons. Kazakhstan added 57, Brazil 43, and China 27. The price? Gold averaged $3,431 per troy ounce in 2025 on the London benchmark, up 44% from 2024. The geopolitical shift? Countries are diversifying their reserves beyond foreign currencies and government bonds. Gold carries no issuer's credit risk, although its price can fall sharply. My forecast: central banks remain net buyers of at least 500 metric tons of gold every year through 2030. Gold stays a strategic reserve asset, not a relic of the past. Raw materials, natural resources, commodities, minerals, critical minerals and rare earths: see my top 10 raw materials, my OIL 2075 prediction card and the top 10 richest countries in natural resources.

The world is firing the dollar. Its share of global reserves fell from about 72% in 2001 to 56.7% in June 2026 (IMF). In 2025, central banks held more gold than US government debt, the first time since 1996. BRICS, 10 countries and about 48% of humanity, builds payment rails outside the Western system, because since the West froze Russia's $300 billion, everyone learned dollars can be switched off.

China builds most of them, Ukraine and Russia fight with them, and Turkey, Poland, and Israel sell them. Not by drone count. 7 jobs, 9 countries: building, banning, fighting, selling, shipping, inventing, protecting. China builds them: 70% of the world's civilian drones, and with Hong Kong $4.6 billion of exports in 2025, more than the next 18 exporting countries combined. The US bans them: every new DJI model blacklisted in December 2025. Ukraine fights with them: 4 million built in 2025, 7 million planned for 2026. Russia matches it: 1.2 to 1.8 million a year. Turkey sells them: Baykar, $2.2 billion in 2025 by its own count, mostly military. Poland ships them: the number 3 drone exporter on Earth, $882 million, ahead of the United States, Europe's route to Ukraine. And the Netherlands, my home country, is number 5 at $632 million. Israel invented them: IAI and Elbit, drones sold to 49 countries. India protects its own: imports banned since 2022. Most of my $150 billion drone market in 2030 still starts in Shenzhen.