What Affects Scrap Metal Prices?

For as long as the scrap metal industry has been flourishing, there have been consistent rises in scrap prices. Today, it is estimated that more than a million tonnes of scrap is recycled across the world each year; it is a business that has led to the generation of huge amounts of revenue for a number of different people. But why have scrap prices been on the rise?

There are actually a number of factors that contribute, either directly or indirectly, to the rise of scrap prices. One of these indirect factors is the growth of the industry itself, and this has occurred due to:

The human need for metal, which continues to grow by the day. Metal is a very important commodity to us as humans – we use it in many different areas of our lives and we are lucky that it can be recycled a number of times without losing any of its value.

The demand for scrap metal and ore in other countries (especially ones like India). When the prices for iron ore, coal and copper rise (for example), the prices of their scrap equivalents also skyrocket, whilst still remaining cheaper than buying new.

The economy and the environment, which benefit in a number of ways from the recycling of scrap metals. Recycling gives us an exhaustive resource of metal that can be reused again and again, which helps to save energy and lower pollution.

It makes sense to think that, if there is a demand for something, the people who are in control of it will try to milk as much money out of the waiting public as they can. So, as the metal industry has grown the scrap one has been steadily growing too, with it’s controllers demanding whatever they want.

But what about the more direct factors influencing scrap prices? The value of scrap could rise for a number of reasons, including:

The going market rate, quality, quantity and purity of the scrap that you are currently in possession of. It makes sense to say that the more pure the metal, the more it is worth, for example.

The discarding of potential scrap metals in rubbish tips and even amongst the community, where it never reaches recycling depots. When you dispose of scrap metals in these ways, you are taking it out of circulation, which pushes the prices of the pieces still in circulation higher.

Whether you are in the possession of ferrous or non-ferrous (such as aluminium, copper, brass and so on) metals, as the latter are actually worth more in today’s market.

If you would like to find out the current market value of the various scrap metals available, you can check out one of the websites dedicated to tracking the rise and fall of scrap prices. They are updated regularly (daily in some cases), so that they always have the most up to date information.