With only a few hours remaining in the final trading day of November, it would take a last-minute miracle to put the BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price back into the green for the month.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) mining giant closed on 31 October at $42.64, down 7.2% for the month.
Unfortunately, November wasn't much better for shareholders.
In early afternoon trade on Friday, shares in the ASX 200 miner are trading for $40.14 apiece.
That sees the BHP share price down 6.1% in November, well behind the 3.1% gains posted by the ASX 200 over this same period.
Here's what's been happening.
Image source: Getty Images
Why did the BHP share price underperform in November?
There were no price-sensitive releases from the Aussie mining giant over the month.
But that doesn't mean there wasn't a lot happening.
When gauging the performance of the BHP share price, we'll first turn to how iron ore and copper, the company's number one and number two revenue earners, fared over the month.
On the iron ore front, the industrial metal held up pretty well, dipping from around US$104 per tonne at the start of November to end the month at US$103 per tonne.
Copper prices took a steeper hit and may have negatively impacted investor sentiment. The red metal slid 6% over the month, from US$9,571 per tonne on 1 November to US$9,002 today.
How about the US elections?
The impact of Donald Trump's sweeping win in the United States presidential elections may also have pressured the BHP share price this month.
On the potentially positive side, BHP has a number of sizeable mining operations in the US. And Trump's regulatory policies are likely to be significantly more friendly to the mining industry than his predecessor's.
However, Trump has also flagged his intention to revamp tariffs of up to 60% on China. This could impact China's already struggling economy and crimp the nation's demand for iron ore and copper.
BHP share price flat on Brazilian settlement
Perhaps the biggest news of the month was the company's acquittal of criminal charges in Brazil over the failure of Samarco's Fundao tailings dam, reported on 15 November. However, investor reaction was muted, with the BHP share price only gaining 0.2% on the day.
Management reiterated that BHP and Vale, its joint venture partner in Samarco, "have always been fully committed to supporting the extensive ongoing remediation and compensation efforts in Brazil".
The market reaction may have been subdued, with BHP still facing legal proceedings over the 2015 disaster in other jurisdictions, including an ongoing class action in the United Kingdom.
The BHP share price is down 21% in 2024.
