Iran, the "Era of Perpetual Uncertainty" and the Next Bull Market in Metals

Vietnam was America’s first “Television War.”

As with other wars, American reporters were out with the troops, out on the battlefield.

But something had changed. TV ownership exploded from 9% in 1950 to 90% by the mid-1960s — and those black-and-white Zeniths brought the war’s brutality into American living rooms every single night — often within 24 hours of when it was filmed.

Vietnam became the flashpoint for an anti-establishment that swept all the way to the White House — and swept Lyndon Baines Johnson out of the 1968 presidential race.

The First Persian Gulf War (1991) became the first “High Tech War” — acquainting Americans with the term “smart bomb,” showing video of pinpoint strikes down air shafts and transforming reporters like CNN’s Peter Arnett and NBC’s Arthur Kent (“The SCUD Stud”) into media superstars.

Camera-tipped bombs gave viewers a literal “bird’s-eye view” of air strikes — and real-time battlefield imagery. Satellite uplinks and the “always-on” gave the world 24/7 wartime coverage for the first time ever. Indeed, historians say that CNN’s coverage by Arnett, Bernard Shaw, John Holliman and Wolf Blitzer was a “watershed moment” in war reporting. That — and video shot by the weapons themselves — changed how audiences “experienced” warfare.

Which brings us to last week’s attack on Iran — which I detailed in Monday’s issue.

The 2026 Iran Conflict (“Operation Epic Fury”) may be the very first “Science-Fiction War” — with artificial intelligence (AI), aerial combat drones, directed-energy weapons, upper-atmosphere interceptions, hypersonic boosters and space-based weapons systems are in use or on the doorstep.

It’s the first time we’re truly seeing all these science-fiction elements converge in a single, sustained, state‑to‑state conflict.

But several striking — and dangerous — imbalances are at work, though …

First, we’re watching an odd battle at play: Iran is sending in scores of cheap ($35,000) kamikaze drones, which the United States and Israel are countering with multi-million-dollar weapons systems — an unsustainable reality you can be certain Beijing is watching.

Second, it stands as a huge proof point of several major storylines we’re following. There’s the Deglobalization and the New Cold War. And there’s the AI Era.

But it’s the Long-Term Commodities Supply Shortfall that we’re talking about here.

So I can tell you: Like that opening moment of the old Mission Impossible TV series, “Operation Epic Fury” just lit the fuse on the opportunity in silver, titanium and other strategic materials.

Indeed, the Iran strike is that perfect “First Trigger.”

Investors just don’t see it yet.

We told you that silver would rebound from its sell-off lows.

It has.

We also told you that 2026 would be a make-or-break year for America in the Global Critical Minerals War.

It’s shaping up to be.

And I told you this year would be a big one for the U.S. defense and aerospace sector. The Iran strike is igniting this last point — and through that it’s a catalyst for the first two. In fact, it’s the starting point for “The Hard Asset Bull.”

Here’s why.

The “Titanium Challenge”

Let’s start with titanium.

Since the Cold War days of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird spy plane — a special aircraft that helped planners understand the opportunity – titanium demand has zoomed in areas like:

✅Aerospace/Defense: Airframes, jet engines, landing gear, armor plating, spacecraft structures and submarine hulls.

✅Medical: Biocompatible implants, surgical tools and dental prosthetics.

✅Automotive: Valves, crankshafts, suspension components.

✅Consumer Goods: Golf clubs, bicycles, camping gear and cookware.

✅Consumer Electronics: Smartphones, laptops and eyeglass frames.

✅Architecture and Marine: Corrosion-resistant cladding and ship components.

✅Industrial and Processing: Heat-exchangers, reactor vessels, desalination plants, pipelines and valves and offshore oil rigs.

✅New Era Energy: Offshore wind turbines, solar panel frames and hydrogen fuel cells.

✅Luxury Goods: Watches, jewelry and value elevation for high-end products.

To flesh this out a bit, consider that every 787 Dreamliner passenger jet built by The Boeing Co. $BA ( ▲ 1.42% ) uses about 50 tons of titanium. And it builds six to seven of those modern jets a month. With airline passenger numbers growing again in the post-COVID-19 era (global passenger traffic will traverse 10 billion this year), there will be plenty of Dreamliner buyers long-term. Analysts are now saying they see a “modern inflection point” for titanium, thanks to something called “additive manufacturing” — essentially the next generation of 3D printing, where tight standards, just-in-time production and a minimum of waste will create precision products with a minimum of energy use, cost and waste.

The global titanium market will grow from about $26.5 billion in 2023 to $39.2 billion in 2030, a compound annual growth rate of 6.8%, says analytics firm VynZ Research.

And that may be understated.

We talk about “finding the best storylines” to find great investments. That’s, in part, because those storylines also help drive demand across markets, sectors and economies.

And when multiple storylines intersect, that demand growth can be downright powerful. And that’s what we have here. We’ve got those major storylines — the intersection of which will drive titanium demand.

And there are “sub-storylines” like the New Golden Age of Aviation, Drones, Hypersonics, the Commercialization of Space and the Reshoring of America, which will add some “oomph” to titanium demand.

Here’s where it gets tricky.

In one of those déjà vu moments harkening back to the invention of the Blackbird way back in the Cold War, America again sees growing demand for a material whose main suppliers are this country’s enemies.

That needs to change …

“X” Marks the Spot

If “titanium sponge” is the precursor and titanium metal is the finished product, America faces a “titanium deficit” because it pretty much dropped out of the “sponge” market a few years back.

China, Russia and Japan ramped up production and flooded the market with low-cost product — meaning U.S. producers couldn’t compete. China and Russia together account for about 70% of the global titanium market.

Japan provides 90% of the titanium sponge America imports. But Japanese suppliers are maxed out, meaning the United States will have to find other solutions.

There are answers. Additive manufacturing will help companies waste less of the metal. Diversifying our suppliers — and sourcing from countries like Ukraine, Australia and Mozambique will help, too.

But “reshoring” production and doing more recycling could prove crucial.

And a U.S. company I’m interested in does both.

It’s called IperionX Ltd. $IPX ( ▲ 3.79% ) . It’s based in Charlotte. And it’s one of my favorite “Commodities Supply Shortfall” stocks.

Iperion owns the Titan Project, a Tennessee mine that produces titanium, zircon, high-grade silica and other critical materials. The company is developing low-carbon, fully recyclable titanium technologies. And its Titanium Production Facility (TPF) at the Virginia Titanium Manufacturing Campus will be key to this.

Iperion’s 100% ownership of its reserves gives it control over supply. The stock has already surged from $30 a share to more than $47 — nearly a 50% jump — since I told you about it in my second-half 2025 forecast report back on July 3.

If you want my full (and free) report, check it out here.

Let’s turn to silver …

Gold’s Impressive Sibling

Silver has already ripped higher on safe‑haven demand – a move that analysts explicitly tied the move to the U.S./Israel/Iran escalation. Experts at first said that gold and silver were “gearing to reach near … January highs” — as tensions intensified.

Silver surged to nearly $122 an ounce in late January — in a “blow-off top.” It bottomed out down around $74 an ounce at the end of the month — then rebounded and hit intraday highs up around $97 on Monday.

Once emotion bled off a bit, the “other precious metal” traded back down around $85.50.

We’re just getting started here.

Remember, silver has a “dual identity” — as both an investment metal and an industrial metal.

A detailed analysis tells us that extended action in Iran could spawn supply-chain disruptions — and even a squeeze on the COMEX, one of four exchanges operated by CME Group Inc. $CME ( ▼ 1.58% ) .

We could see that squeeze because of:

• Critically low registered silver stocks.

• Elevated paper‑to‑physical ratios.

• Rising delivery notices, and …

• Historical analogs like the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the 2022 Nickel Crisis.

The Econ 101 of Silver

So let’s talk about the “Econ 101 of Silver” — supply and demand.

Let’s start with demand.

From an investment standpoint, you’ve got physical bullion — like silver bars and coins like the one-ounce American Silver Eagle, Canadian Maple Leaf and Mexican Libertad. Investments in physical silver are projected to soar to 227 million ounces this year – a 20% increase and a three-year high. That’s eight times the estimated 2.5% growth rate of the U.S. economy and more than six times the projected global growth rate of 3.3%.

That’s a hefty outperformance.

ETFs amplify demand because investor purchases and sales of their shares move “bulk ounces” in and out of vaults.

Then there’s that whole “Silver Stacker” culture — a group of “perma-bulls” who collect “junk silver” (high-silver-content circulated coins, silverware and even heirloom silver serving sets). I’m a “silver bug” myself — a careful investor who uses precious metals as both a hedge and an investment.

That brings us to industrial demand — which accounts for as much as 59% of silver use.

Electronics and semiconductors are the biggest slice – silver has the highest conductivity of any metal — and used 445 million ounces in 2023. And it’s been supercharged since then — thanks to electric vehicles and AI (AI data centers use as much as three times more silver than their predecessors). Solar and photovoltaics are also big users.

So let’s talk supply.

Since most silver is mined as a byproduct, global production has been essentially flat for years. That’s drawn down all the “above-ground” buffers. That’s a true (measurable) imbalance that supports higher volatility and tighter inventories.

Structural deficits were projected to hit 67 million ounces this year.

But because stocks and other assets “discount” the future back to the present, it’s the “what comes next” that matters.

Silver was already tight. The U.S. Mint sees it as a supply-chain problem — a key reason it boosted prices for some silver products as much as 90%.

Geopolitics just kicked the legs out from under the paper market. And we’re looking at a three-part setup for higher silver prices.

Even much higher prices.

• Demand Shock: Safe-haven buying spikes if the Middle East gets hotter — or looks to stay hot longer.

• Supply‑Chain Shock: A Strait of Hormuz disruption slows bulk carrier traffic — meaning silver concentrates and refined shipments get delayed.

• The Already-Fragile Market Reacts: COMEX inventories are thin enough that a “delivery wave” forces short-sellers to scramble —a classic short-squeeze.

One analyst — noting the single-day, 8% jump that took prices into the $90s — said new surprises could send silver up to $200.

Don’t obsess over the number; focus on the logic … on the process:

It could look something like this:

And that was before this dust-up in Iran. U.S. Tomahawk cruise missiles are estimated to use as much as 15 ounces of silver each — most of it in the circuitry.

And that’s just for starters: As you can see from this infographic, other key U.S. weapons systems depend on the “other precious metal.”

And with all the target strikes we’ve seen already, extended action in Iran will have defense contractors in America, Europe and Israel working extra shifts to replenish military stores.

View it as an extra “Trigger” for silver — which was already a foundational piece of the Stock Picker’s Corner (SPC) Model Portfolio.

Silver was trading down around $22 an ounce back in early 2024 — when we first launched SPC and when we first started talking with you about it.

The fact is … we’re barreling into a “New Era of Perpetual Uncertainty”— one of the new storylines we’re developing for you here at SPC.

This Middle East action — which U.S. President Donald Trump says could last for four … or even five weeks … or even (potentially) “forever” — bolsters my point.

You need to take the long view. You need to Accumulate opportunistically.

Every investor should own at least some silver — some physical silver (coins or bullion) and shares in a silver ETF or a silver-related company. (And, if you’re able, some gold, as well — as I detail here.)

The iShares Silver Trust ETF $SLV ( ▲ 0.88% ) is an obvious candidate — so obvious that folks often overlook it. SLV is up more than 8% year-to-date and 201% over the last five.

But there’s one silver stock I believe every Wealth Builder should own. It’s a company that I’ve followed for years — it was even in the portfolio at my previous newsletter Private Briefing — way back in the 2010s.

And I made that stock an inaugural member of the Model Portfolio. SPC Premium members can learn more about it here. It’s up 310.4% over the last five years and 27.3% already here in 2026.

And check out our new ebook: Wealth Builder/Wealth Killer: Keep Your Cool And Win In a Stock Market Built to Break You. It’s a tool to help you navigate that “perpetual uncertainty” — and win.

See you next time;