Base-metal ETFs are unlikely to have as broad a reach as the gold funds, Raw said. ETF Securities Ltd. started the first exchange-traded products in physical copper, nickel and tin in December. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and BlackRock have said they may also open such funds.
"There isn't the same logic behind owning copper ETF," Raw said. Gold ETFs are a safe-haven asset, while people look at industrial metals as linked to the global growth story, she said. "I just don't see the same level of investment demand that we've seen for gold."
Higher storage costs will also probably deter investors from ETFs backed by industrial metals, she said, adding that the tin fund "might be interesting, because there are very few tin mining companies, and what you have seen is that there has been a real squeeze in the tin market."