Product
October 16, 2024
Ferrous scrap prices surge, mills hold firm
Written by Stephen Miller
Last week, US mills entered the scrap market, albeit later in the month than usual. Now we know why. They were trying to buy sideways (whatever that means anymore). However, due to the slowing generation of industrial scrap and the limited flows of obsolescent material, namely shredder feed, the market traded up in most districts by a solid $20 per gross ton (gt) across the board. The exceptions were mills in the Detroit, Northern Indiana, and Chicago districts. Mills in these districts have hung together to thwart any increases in price over the last several months. In the Detroit area, some mills have tried to buy down in recent months, even though it was obviously the wrong price. However, this month it looks as though they all covered their needs without boosting price tags. Can they do it again next month? Most believe the jury is still out on this.
The ferrous scrap market in the US and Canada usually starts to rise in price during the last two months of the year, or at least stabilizes for a stronger January. There are several reasons for this:
