Q3 September 2024 – Market Update
Ferrous Market
After the August domestic ferrous scrap market settled mostly sideways, there was still a lot of uncertainty in the marketplace. There had been no ferrous scrap price increases since December of 2023. The negative sentiment over-hanging the domestic and international ferrous scrap marketplace was further enhanced by the announcements that there would be 17 domestic mill outages in September removing approximately 1.1 million net tons of flat rolled product from production.
Non-Ferrous Market
In non-ferrous, the terminal markets in aluminum, nickel, and copper have stabilized after suffering major price corrections from early July through early August. Overall mill demand continues soft going into September.
The scrap industry has been significantly affected by decreasing prices, inefficient trades, and increasing equipment and labor expenses. These challenges indicate the necessity for a reset in order to restore profitability.