Identifying Hard Commodities

Commodities are a significant category of alternative investments that can provide diversification, inflation hedging, and other potential benefits in an investment portfolio. Among various types of commodities, they can be classified as hard or soft commodities based on their physical characteristics. Hard commodities are typically natural resources that are mined or extracted, while soft commodities are agricultural products or livestock. Understanding which commodities fall into each category is crucial for investors making decisions about asset allocation.

Which of the following is classified as a hard commodity?