BHP overtakes CBA as Australia’s most valuable company
Updated ,first published
Mining giant BHP has overtaken the Commonwealth Bank as the most valuable company on Australia’s sharemarket, as investors pile into mining shares thanks to a rise in commodity prices, while sentiment cools towards the nation’s biggest bank.
Shares in BHP have risen sharply in the past six months as investor sentiment towards China’s economy has improved and commodities such as copper have surged, while at the same time CBA has retreated after hitting a record high in mid-2025.
During trading on Tuesday, as BHP shares rose strongly, the miner’s market value rose above that of the banking giant. BHP shares rose as much as 3.4 per cent during the session, taking its market capitalisation above $253 billion, eclipsing the market value of CBA.
By the end of trading, BHP – nicknamed the “Big Australian” – had given up some of those earlier gains, and the miner was 2.7 per cent higher at the close, while its market value was marginally higher than that of CBA. The bank had been the biggest stock on the ASX since 2024 when it overtook BHP.
CBA’s market value briefly hit $300 billion last year despite experts saying the company was overvalued, but in recent months it has retreated as investors have tended to favour the other major sector on the ASX outside banks: miners.
Opal Capital chief investment officer Omkar Joshi said mining shares have rallied this year due to a bounce in the prices of commodities including iron ore, copper, silver, gold and lithium.
“We are seeing strength across the board. Everywhere we look, every commodity is doing quite well at the moment,” Joshi said.
The changing of the guard between CBA and BHP came as the S&P/ASX200 rose 81.50 points or 0.9 per cent on Tuesday, closing at 8941.60.
The Australian dollar, which has strengthened in recent days on the back of US dollar weakness, was trading at US69.10¢ at 4.40pm AEDT.
Aside from the gains for BHP, other iron ore miners also rose as the price of the key steel-making ingredient strengthened, with Fortescueand Rio Tinto both gaining 1.7 per cent.
Gold miners were mixed as the precious metal extended its gains after a strong run in recent days, with Northern Star up 0.4 per cent and Evolution 0.7per cent lower. Silver prices roared higher, boosting South 32 by 2.5 per cent.
Financial stocks advanced, with the big four banks all in the green. Commonwealth Bank rose 0.4 per cent, Westpac climbed 0.6 per cent, National Australia Bank advanced 1.3 per cent and ANZ Bank gained 1.1 per cent.
Most energy stocks advanced as oil prices strengthened. Woodside rose 1 per cent and Santos gained 2.5 per cent, while Yancoal drifted 0.2 per cent lower.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.5 per cent and won back its losses from last week’s dip. The Dow Jones climbed 313 points, or 0.6 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.4 per cent.
Baker Hughes helped lead the way on Wall Street and rose 4.4 per cent after delivering a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The energy technology company said it’s benefiting from strong momentum in demand for liquefied natural gas, among other things.
CoreWeave climbed 5.7 per cent after Nvidia said it invested $US2 billion ($2.9 billion) in the stock and will help accelerate the buildout of CoreWeave’s artificial-intelligence factories, which use Nvidia chips, by 2030 to advance AI adoption. Nvidia slipped 0.6 per cent.
USA Rare Earth rallied 7.9 per cent after saying the US government agreed to provide $US277 million in federal funding to help the company produce heavy rare earths, minerals and magnets. The Trump administration also agreed to a proposed $US1.3 billion loan, while the company separately raised $US1.5 billion through private investors.
Much of the rest of Wall Street was relatively quiet. That included mixed performances for airlines, which had to cancel thousands of flights due to the winter storm that swept much of the United States over the weekend. Delta Air Lines lost 0.7 per cent, and Southwest Airlines added 0.2 per cent.
The action was stronger in the gold market, where the metal’s price rallied another 2.1 per cent and briefly topped $US5100 per ounce for the first time to set another record. Silver surged even more and settled 14 per cent higher.
Prices for precious metals have been soaring as investors look for safer places to park their money amid threats of tariffs, still-high inflation, political strife and mountains of debt for governments worldwide.
With staff reporter, AP
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Clancy Yeates is deputy business editor. He has covered banking and financial services, and was previously national business correspondent in the Canberra bureau.Connect via X or email.