At the beginning of 2024, Benzinga noted four mining stocks to follow while evaluating tailwinds like green tech demand and persistent inflation. Although gold, as a benchmark, has had one of the best years on record, outperforming even the surging equities market, miners delivered mixed results.

Aura Minerals (OTCQX:ORAAF) is a gold and copper miner focused on Central and South America, with primary operations in Brazil, Mexico, and Honduras. During 2024, the company made notable asset acquisitions, obtaining rights to explore Pé Quente and Pezão projects to boost its reserves. The company also acquired Bluestone Resources, a junior miner with a promising high-grade gold deposit in Guatemala.

OceanaGold (OTC:OCANF) is a mid-tier gold and copper producer with production in New Zealand, the Philippines, and the United States. It originally started as Macraes Mining Company, named after the foundation asset in New Zealand, which produced over 5 million ounces of gold since 1990. During 2024, the company focused on advancing the Didipio gold and copper project in the Philippines and providing initial mineral reserves for the proposed Wharekirauponga gold mine in New Zealand of 1.2 million ounces, with a projected IRR of 24% at a gold price of $2,400 per ounce.

B2Gold (AMEX:BTG) is a mid-tier mining company operating mines in emerging markets and exploration activities in more stable jurisdictions like Canada and Finland. The company's principal asset is the Fekola mine in Mali, with an annual production exceeding 500,000 ounces. Its other operating assets include Masabe in the Philippines and Otjikoto in Namibia.B2Gold had a volatile year, as escalating instability in Mali resulted in the off-site deaths of multiple employees and an increasingly complex situation with the ruling military junta. Furthermore, the higher-than-anticipated capital costs for a project in northern Canada have weighed on financials. Owing to these setbacks, B2Gold has lost 14.4% year-to-date.