North American Scrap Metal Prices Display Mixed Trend on the Index- September 21, 2026
Daily Scrap Metal Price Report | 2026-09-22 07:11:47
Copper and brass/bronze scrap prices registered modest gains, while aluminum prices saw a slight decline. Select steel scrap grades also declined.
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MONTREAL (Scrap Monster): North American scrap metal prices exhibited a mixed trend on the ScrapMonster Price Index as of Monday, September 21, 2026. Copper and brass/bronze scrap prices registered modest gains, while aluminum prices saw a slight decline. Select steel scrap grades also declined. Meanwhile, stainless steel scrap prices held steady on the Index.
Copper Scrap Prices
#1 Copper Wire and Tubing, #2 Copper Wire and Tubing, #1 Copper Bare Bright and #3 Copper-Light Copper: up by $0.07/lb each.
#1 Insulated Copper Wire (85% Recovery) and #2 Insulated Copper Wire (50% Recovery): saw a jump of $0.02/lb each.
Copper Radiator Scrap: increased by $0.02/lb.
Harness Wire (35% Recovery) and Romex Wire: edged higher by $0.02/lb each.
Heater Cores, Scrap Electric Motors, Starters, Sealed Units: up by $0.01/lb each.
Alternator Scrap, Copper Transformer Scrap, Cu/Al Radiator Ends, Cu/Al Radiators, Cu/Al Radiators/Fe, and Xmas Lights: unchanged.
Aluminum Scrap Prices
Aluminum recorded the broadest weakness among the major categories.
5052 Scrap, 6063 Extrusions, 1100 Scrap, 3003 Scrap, 356 Aluminum Wheels, 6061 Extrusions, and 6063 Extrusions/Fe each fell by $0.01 per lb.
The largest decline was seen in E.C. Aluminum Wire, whose prices declined by $0.02 per lb on the Index.
Chrome Wheels, Litho Sheets, MLC Clips, Old Cast, UBC, Old Sheet, Painted Siding and Zorba 90% NF also declined by $0.01 per lb.
Meanwhile, Al/Cu Radiators, Al/Cu Radiators/Fe, Aluminum Radiators, Aluminum Radiators/Fe, Aluminum Transformers, Mixed Aluminum Turnings, and Breakage 50% Recovery prices remained unchanged on the Index.
Steel Scrap Prices
Steel scrap prices witnessed a decline across select grades.
#1 Bundle, #1 Busheling, and #1 HMS were down by $5 per MT on the Index, while HMS 80/20 and Sheet Metal held steady.
Shredded Auto Scrap and Structural Steel recorded a decline of $5 per MT each from the previous day.
Stainless Steel Scrap Prices
Stainless steel prices stabilized during the session.
- 201 SS and 301 SS were unchanged.
- 304 SS Solid remained flat compared with the previous day, while 304 SS Turning also recorded no change.
- 309 SS and 310 SS held at the previous day's levels.
- 330 SS was flat, while 316 SS Solid remained unchanged on the Index.
Brass/Bronze Scrap Prices
Brass and bronze scrap prices in North America recorded modest gains on the Index.
- 70/30 Brass Scrap, 80/20 Brass Scrap, 85/15 Brass Scrap and Brass Radiator each increased $0.02 per lb.
- Brass Radiator/Fe and Brass Radiator Ends held steady compared with the previous day's price levels.
- Red Brass, Red Borings and Yellow Brass each gained $0.02 per lb on the Index.
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Which North American scrap metal segment showed the strongest performance on September 21, 2026?
Frequently Asked Questions
- How did North American scrap metal prices perform on September 21, 2026?
North American scrap prices showed mixed movement. Copper and brass/bronze prices increased, aluminum prices generally declined, and selected steel grades weakened. Stainless steel scrap prices remained stable across the major grades tracked by the ScrapMonster Price Index.
- Which copper scrap grades recorded the biggest gains?
#1 Copper Wire and Tubing, #2 Copper Wire and Tubing, #1 Copper Bare Bright and #3 Copper-Light Copper each increased by $0.07 per lb. Several other copper categories, including insulated wire, copper radiators and harness wire, also posted smaller gains.
- Did stainless steel scrap prices change?
No. Stainless steel scrap prices were unchanged on September 21. Grades including 201 SS, 301 SS, 304 SS Solid, 304 SS Turning, 309 SS, 310 SS, 316 SS Solid and 330 SS all held at their previous price levels.
