Uranium has emerged as one of the standout commodities of 2025, outperforming gold and benefiting from the confluence of nuclear energy expansion and AI-driven electricity demand.
Global X analysis showed uranium-focused and related thematic exchange-traded funds (ETF) have delivered stronger returns than gold ETFs year to date.
Global X senior investment strategist Billy Leung said the performance reflects a structural shift in markets as capital flows into the physical infrastructure underpinning the next wave of AI growth.
“While Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom are hitting or sitting at near record highs, I think the real story is shifting toward the infrastructure that enables them,” Leung said. “The next phase of AI investment is being built in the physical layer of the data centres, grid systems, cabling and power networks that keep the AI ecosystem running and give it power to operate efficiently.”
According to Leung, hyperscaler and enterprise spending on AI infrastructure has reached unprecedented levels, with global capital expenditure on AI-related buildout tracking towards roughly US$500 billion next year and projected to exceed US$2.5–3 trillion by the end of the decade.
Demand for computing power alone could add more than 50 GW of new electricity capacity by 2030.
“That shift is showing up clearly in Global X ETF flows,” Leung said. “The Global X Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure ETF (AINF) has taken in $27 million this year, equal to about 84 per cent of its current assets under management, with most of that arriving in the past three months.
“The Global X Uranium ETF (ATOM) has added another $22 million, roughly 20 per cent of AUM year to date.”
This trend was reinforced by performance across AINF’s holdings, which saw computer hardware company AMD (its top holding) being up 51 per cent over the year to 22 October, and Siemens Energy having “more than doubled”, according to Leung.
Additionally, critical infrastructure provider Vertiv is up 58 per cent, connector manufacturer Amphenol is up 88 per cent, and nuclear power supplier Centrus Energy surged 248 per cent as “the market prices in higher grid and data centre energy demand,” he said.
“Cameco and NexGen Energy have also posted large gains as nuclear power re-emerges as a key enabler of AI workloads.”
The resurgence of uranium has coincided with a global nuclear power renaissance, supported by renewed government commitments globally to low carbon baseload generation.
Coinciding with uranium’s performance, VanEck announced the listing of the VanEck Uranium and Energy Innovation ETF (ASX: URAN) to take place on 30 October, offering targeted exposure to companies across the uranium and nuclear energy value chain.
VanEck CEO and managing director for Asia-Pacific, Arian Neiron, said: “We are in the early phases of a global nuclear power renaissance.
“Major governments have committed to ramping up nuclear power capacity and utilisation, recognising the vital role it can play as part of a resilient, low carbon energy mix.”
He said the long-term opportunity extends beyond uranium mining, with the ETF provider anticipating a long runaway for the nuclear ecosystem as more countries adopt the power source, existing capacity expands and new tech such as small modular reactors provide safer and more efficient means of production.
“This is not a single-commodity story; we see this as a structural growth opportunity that spans the entire value chain.”
The launch of URAN brings VanEck’s total number of ETFs on ASX to 47, building on its efforts to give investors access to high-growth global themes.
