Anyone else having trouble with scrap metal prices plummeting? I'm in Southern California and the prices have been dropping steadily for the past month. It's gotten so low that I do better recycling cardboard lately.
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Anyone else having trouble with scrap metal prices plummeting? I'm in Southern California and the prices have been dropping steadily for the past month. It's gotten so low that I do better recycling cardboard lately.
There are several current threads running about the dropping prices
I scrap cars and 2 months ago price was $180 a ton (2000 pounds) or .09 a pound
Today is $125.00 a ton or .0625 a pound
I was warned it will most likely continue to drop to at least $100 a ton
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap...huge-dive.html
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap...n-my-yard.html
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap...ng-remove.html
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap...onverters.html
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap...-near-you.html
Rather then me continue to copy and paste these threads >> Look here and you will see them all 345 threads about Scrap Metal Prices
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/scrap-metal-prices/
As has been posted on other threads, time to buy and stockpile. Turkey did make a minor purchase lately which is a positive movement, but metal is not moving internationally, nationally, and in the Midwest two big refineries are shut down for remodeling. Prices are not expected to rebound until late winter.
Steel prices also dropped here in Illinois as well. Looks to be about 7 cents a pound. Copper price seemed to hold as of last time I dropped some off. As for the rest, I am not sure. I still wish we would get more than 15 cents a pound for insulated wire..
The drop of the NZ$ against the US$ ( our $ was worth 80cents, now 70cents) made out metal go up a little.
Then steel dropped a bit, so everything else went down as well, back to where it was before.
Then steel dropped again, but Aluminium went up a bit. Copper went up a tiny about. Just the market correcting itself.
So, Copper, after all that, dropped about 12cents a lb, or NZ 30cents a Kg.
I lost about $60, or US$45 odd on my Copper stock.
Google, scrapmetalpricesnz to see what we get > Scrap Metal Price, Pricelist - Metalcorp NZ
Nice!
YES prices have been on steady course down, I took in a 1/2 ton of light steel (shred or tin) today and only two cents a pound more than cardboard. It is not a favorable scrapers market, but it is market that goes up and down. Now is when you only sell what you have to, hold onto what you can for that day when the market is more favorable. This is a time to think "out of the box", but keep your mind on the big "picture".
same here in Durban
i took in non ferrous for the last two days & i can honestly say i would have earned more than a third more for the same stuff a few months ago
everything from copper, brass down to stainless is DOWN
it would be nice to be in the position to stockpile but theres a few factors that prevent me doing that:
- i depend on scrap to earn a living- i have to sell what i have or my pockets will be dry
-i dont have space to stockpile
-theft- too many druggies & petty thieves
That's why have:
A full time gig
Over 3/4 of a city block to stockpile
And live in an area with a low crime rate!!!
It's terrible because I've pretty much stopped scrapping due to the low prices but will be slowly stockpiling over the winter.
Electricity consumption versus cost has an effect on prices I'm sure. Globally speaking that is. Summertime is nice in that at night, the rates are down and smelting operations are in full effect, it's also construction season so raw materials demand is pretty high. Also consider that from August to December consumer electronic sales are 200% what they are for the rest of the year. These things have a seasonal factor on prices. I have been stockpiling what isn't worth refining costs and refining the rest. It's quite a bit easier to store PMs than it is to store the material they came from. This applies across the board.
Moral of the story is, tis the season to do breakdowns and scrap maximizing. Plan for four or five months of not turning in anything but what you need to for bare operating essentials. That's what I'm doing.
I strive to attain this very dream in the near future!!Quote:
Originally Posted by taterjuice
I already have the full time gig that is the bread and butter
Need more room to stockpile
Need to move out a ways to get that little bit more of a lower crime rate.
In the city where I am- if it ain't nailed down- consider it GONE! Sad but true!
.15cents say whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?Quote:
Originally Posted by tjlock
tjlock, man I will COME TO YOU to give you a better wire price man.
Got paid $95 a ton for shred today at the local yard. Yes, $95 a ton. Thankfully the main yard I use for steel has only dropped a penny during this, I'm used to .08 a lb. The nice thing is I have found more scrap than usual so I'm still making about the same. I only saw one other scrapper on the run today, and he didn't have much. I'm hoarding aluminum, copper, brass, and wire for as long as I can until prices go back up.
Weird, our price for Copper is now NZ$6.63 per Kg
Which is 36 cents higher than on the 5th November.
So really, Coppers held its price, probably gone up a little (my yards prices are a little higher than the web reference site that I use & quote from)
But Heavy Iron has dropped by 25%, though litegauge steels only dropped by less than 3%.
Basicly, thru carefull shopping of scrapyards prices you can get the same return when you are selling nonferrous.
But, Irons dropped. Particualy Heavy Iron.
Since I only scrap nonferrous, everythings still sweet. I gave all of my Ferrous to my scrapmetal source last month, so he did get a good return.
You're also in the southern hemisphere during your peak season.
My normal buyer of nonferrous has stopped buying as of right now cause he has so much stockpiled waiting for a price rise.
Wow... not a good signQuote:
Originally Posted by Mechanic688
I am at currnetly $215 per ton for this month.Even though i havent hauled anything at all in lol.
I have heard that next month it is going to stay the same or may go up just a little.
The one benefit that lower prices bring is the hobbyist, or opportunist scrappers get out real quick. I haven't been very active around the board, my full time gig has kept me extremely busy, but I have noticed a lot of scrap has been sitting on the curb during trash pickup. I am seriously considering getting a small facility to haul and horde myself until prices start to creep back up.
Not at all.. I have never heard of this occurring!Quote:
Originally Posted by hobo finds
Prices for shred here have dropped over the last 4 years and have never gone up one red cent.
Started at $270 a US ton and now down to $130 a metric ton.
Light iron is going for $60 per ton here. I have a big pile out back that I'm holding on to. I do E-Waste, so I have a lot of PC cases.
Right now, I'm focusing on our refurbishing arm entirely. The distance to the yard is so great that I'd actually be losing money if I hauled cases to the yard.
Sadly, I think we need this. The people who aren't serious will be thinned out. Three years ago, anybody with an F-150 and a dolly was a "Vehicle Recycling Company".
This will lower the hype, we can hope.
It's a first for me, I have never been turned down on selling anything.Quote:
Originally Posted by sledge
I took in some #2 insul. and some copper alum. heat sinks (with copper tubes) and he offered to buy the heat sinks as breakage at .15 a lb. and the #2 he turned down. Even tried to trade my #2 for a few computers (he's my reg. guy for computers) and he turned me down also. ;(
Well, I shift away towards rebuilding and selling computers and making repairs versus scrapping when the price is truly down. I then buy to add to this effort, all the while I maintain the highest prices I can, even if it is at or slightly above scrap value it WILL come back up eventually.
Lowest here during this price drop was 180/ton for shred last week. 2 yards around here have went up to 185/ton. $5 more a ton aint much, But better than not. Dont quote me on the prices going up. But where is Pistone when ya need him??? LOL
nice rebound for gold. Hope trend continues! up $40+ so far today
http://i1064.photobucket.com/albums/...ps2a6aa249.jpg
I heard from my guy the other day.That so far he has heard that it is going to stay the same.I will talk to him again in a few days to see if there was any changes!
The sky Is falling !!!! Sell sell sell !!!
I sold a truckload , almost 40,000lbs, of circuit boards in July when gold was over $1320/oz. I'm figuring the truckload of boards I sold in November, when gold was under $1180/oz, will be around $10,000 net lower...
Then you'd have crapped if you had sold when it was around 1800.Quote:
Originally Posted by HiTechMike
That would have been AWESOME!! Hopefully those day's will come back some day!Quote:
Originally Posted by Mechanic688
this happens every year for 50+ years the easterners go into there holidays and quitbbuying scrap so our markets drop
i miss 2200 platinum and 10,200 rhodium
I had posted that about a month ago >> November 19thQuote:
Originally Posted by JohnC4X4
GOOD NEWS >> Stayed at $125.00 a ton and Yesterday price went up $10 to $135.00 a ton
What prices is everyone getting for scrap steel a ton at the moment?
As of Saturday 12-6-14 it was $140.00 a gross ton here. Breaks down to 0.0625 cents a pound for shred/lite iron.
Jesus. Thats Terrible. I feel like I was getting 220 or so a ton a few months ago.
The yard I go to here in Utah is down to $0.050 per pound... $100 per ton is not worth the 10 mile drive now.
Actually scrap around here went up a little in November and December last year.Quote:
Originally Posted by nebrs13