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The North American scrap market slowed on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, but clean copper continued to gain ground. After the widespread increases at the start of the week, the main buying benchmarks remained almost unchanged, with one significant exception: four copper grades recorded a further increase of 2 US cents per pound.
This was a selective movement, not a broad repricing of the entire metal recycling sector.
Two Sessions, Six Cents Higher
Bare Bright #1, Copper Wire and Tubing #1, Copper Wire and Tubing #2 and Copper-Light Copper #3 all recorded +2 ¢/lb compared with October 19. On the previous day, the same materials had risen by 4 ¢/lb: the cumulative gain compared with Friday, October 16, therefore reached 6 ¢/lb. This is important for collectors, traders and processors because the movement did not end with the first recovery session. However, we do not know whether or to what extent actual traded volumes increased: the quoted references are buying benchmarks, not a collection of completed contracts.
| Category | October 20 vs October 19 | October 19 vs October 16 | Two-session result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clean copper: four grades | +2 ¢/lb | +4 ¢/lb | +6 ¢/lb |
| Aluminium | Unchanged | +1 ¢/lb for several grades | Gain retained |
| Stainless steel | Unchanged | Higher for several grades | Gain retained |
| Ferrous scrap | Unchanged | Unchanged | Unchanged |
| Brass and bronze | Unchanged | Unchanged | Unchanged |
Why Not All Copper Moves Together
The advance remained confined to clean copper fractions. Insulated wire, radiators, transformer scrap, mixed copper-aluminium radiators and electric motors showed no further daily changes. The difference deserves attention: purity and the ease with which metal can be recovered can affect price formation, as can the processing required before material can return to production. It would nevertheless be inappropriate to attribute the gap to a single cause: the source provides no data on refining margins, inventories or industrial buying by individual grade.
Aluminium Pauses After Monday’s Recovery
Aluminium maintained the levels reached on October 19, when numerous grades had risen by 1 ¢/lb. On Tuesday, no further adjustments were recorded for E.C. Aluminum Wire, 6063 and 6061 extrusions, Old Cast, UBC cans and MLC Clips. References for radiators, transformers and other recovery fractions were also stable. Stability does not amount to a bearish reversal: it merely indicates that the indices did not extend their rise during the session under review.
Stainless Steel Retains Its Gains
Stainless steel also went through a day of consolidation. The benchmarks for 304 SS Solid, 304 SS Turning, 309 SS, 310 SS, 316 SS Solid and 330 SS remained unchanged, as did 201 SS and 301 SS. Monday’s increases were not reversed, but there was no second advance. For companies purchasing stainless scrap for recycling, this signals the need to distinguish between the retention of higher quotations and a renewed acceleration in the market.
Ferrous Scrap And Brass Stay Outside The Move
The ferrous scrap segment continued to move sideways. #1 HMS, #1 Busheling, Shredded Auto Scrap, HMS 80/20, #1 Bundle, Sheet Metal and Structural Steel confirmed Monday’s indications. No new changes emerged for brass and bronze either: Red Brass, Yellow Brass and Brass Radiator were unchanged. This distinction is particularly revealing because the increase in high-purity copper did not automatically spread to copper-containing alloys. Selling conditions and the metallurgical mix of individual categories continue to matter.
What It Means For Collectors And Industry
For sellers of clean copper scrap, the second positive session strengthens the negotiating reference compared with the end of the previous week. Those dealing in mixed fractions or materials requiring separation, by contrast, cannot assume that they will obtain the same increase. For industrial users, the picture remains differentiated: purchasing high-purity copper can be affected by the rise in indices, while other secondary raw materials show unchanged prices. Local values can nevertheless differ from indices according to geographical area, quantity, metallurgical yield, quality specifications and payment conditions.
A Selective Rather Than Broadly Rising Market
The signal from October 20 is that of a selective market, not a generalised rise. Clean copper retains the advantage built since Friday, while aluminium and stainless steel consolidate Monday’s gains and ferrous scrap, brass and bronze remain stable. To assess whether the movement can continue, it will be essential to watch the next assessments, the extension of increases to other grades and, above all, prices actually achievable in individual markets. Two positive sessions for certain benchmarks are not sufficient, on their own, to demonstrate a structural change in North American scrap demand.
The Meaning Of Buying Benchmarks
Changes expressed in cents per pound concern scrap buying indices, not the price of exchange-traded refined copper. Although the two markets are connected through the industrial supply chain, they reflect different characteristics: material quality, recoverability, sorting costs and commercial terms. A rise of 2 ¢/lb does not mean that every tonne of scrap was sold at a price higher by exactly the same amount. As the source does not provide absolute levels for each grade, it is more accurate to focus on changes without constructing undocumented quotations. The same caution applies to ferrous scrap: stable indices do not imply identical prices in every city, plant or regional market.
From Collection To Remelting, Differences Matter
For a collection centre, accurately separating Bare Bright, copper tubing and mixed fractions can affect the commercial value of the material, especially when the market selectively rewards cleaner grades. However, every sorting operation has a cost and must be assessed against the actual improvement in the achievable price. For a foundry or refiner, the priority remains the total cost of recovered metal, not simply the daily movement in an index. Freight, yield losses, impurities and immediate availability can change purchasing economics. This is why an increase in a benchmark does not necessarily coincide with an equivalent rise in the margin of the business selling or processing scrap.
The Next Sessions Will Be Decisive
The shift from widespread growth on Monday to stability for most products on Tuesday raises a question: is the market merely consolidating its new levels, or is the initial momentum running out? Available data do not allow a definitive answer. An extension of increases to other copper classes and alloys would send a different signal from a third positive session limited to four clean grades. Likewise, any changes in aluminium and stainless steel would need to be interpreted by distinguishing a new trend from normal benchmark adjustments. For now, the clearest message remains the sharp differentiation between materials.