Issue 001 · 2026-11-11 · PUBLIC SAMPLE / EDITORIAL DRAFT
The index is not your settlement.
Start with national direction; finish with your actual grade, yield, freight and payment terms.
Data retrieved 2026-11-11 09:29 AM MT. Mode: CACHED PUBLIC SNAPSHOT — original retrieval timestamps retained.
Ferrous metal scrap
Ferrous metal scrap: 509.152 for 2026-09; -0.45% month over month; +10.27% year over year.
Index Dec 1986=100; not seasonally adjusted. Preliminary and subject to revision. Source definition
Nonferrous metal scrap
Nonferrous metal scrap: 819.937 for 2026-09; -1.08% month over month; +33.61% year over year.
Index Dec 1986=100; not seasonally adjusted. Preliminary and subject to revision. Source definition
What to do with this context
A change in the national index does not mechanically change your grade-specific bid. Compare offers using payable weight, recovery assumptions, deductions, freight, settlement timing and counterparty risk. The prototype calculator is a way to check arithmetic, not a substitute for a quote.
Why copper recycling is worth following
USGS estimates that old scrap supplied 160,000 metric tons of copper in 2025, while new manufacturing scrap supplied 760,000 metric tons. Scrap contributed about 30% of US copper supply. This establishes material economic activity, not demand for this newsletter.
USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — Copper
Editorial watch queue
Federal Register search results below are machine-filtered leads, not legal interpretations or confirmed obligations. Only titles and source links are included; a human must review applicability and publication status before publication.
Public sample/editorial draft. No daily scrap quotes, proprietary price assessments or forecasts are supplied. This sample is not a claim about newsletter delivery, subscribers or transactions.