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With the coronavirus pandemic affecting seemingly every aspect of our daily lives, many are wondering whether it’s wise to hold off selling scrap copper during these tumultuous times. While it shouldn’t be taken as professional financial advice, a lot of common sense 

Copper Commodity Price Indices

Anyone looking for real-time copper prices on the world commodity markets will have no doubt witnessed a rapid drop in price in early March 2020. It’s highly likely that this sudden drop can be largely attributed to the coronavirus pandemic. Fewer businesses require industrial copper, the construction industry is engaging in fewer projects, and the list goes on.

As with all markets, however, nobody really knows where the price will be in the future. Sure, financial analysts can make educated estimates, but nobody can know with absolute certainty.

As of 20 May 2020, prices are hovering at around $2.45 USD per lb (approximately $8 AUD per kilo). That’s a significant recovery from late March, where it was at around $2.10 USD per lb. Over the past year, however, the price of copper has dropped around 10 per cent.

Quantity of Copper Scrap

When it comes to selling copper, quantity plays a large role. Think practically: a handful of copper simply isn’t worth following commodity price tickers. Best case, a kilo of copper goes up a few percentage points and you earn what, an extra dollar for holding onto it?

The game changes completely when dealing with large, industrial-sized quantities of copper. In terms of scale, industries may earn or lose significant amounts in their finances due to the price of copper. In these cases, however, large corporations and big businesses have teams of finance personnel to look into these matters.

In the case of residential scrap and copper scrap from small and medium-sized enterprises, the quantity of copper scrap may or may not play an important role in deciding whether to sell or to hold. Given that it’s showing an upward trend on commodity markets, holding may be preferable for significant quantities, but there’s no guarantee.

Verdict: Sell or Hold?

Copper is worth far less in its weight than gold, so unless your business is producing tonnes of scrap copper on a regular basis it’s probably best not to hold onto it for too long. It isn’t just financial, it’s also practicality.

Storing scrap copper is itself a big task and it’s often far more convenient to have it out of sight and out of mind. Not only will it make the workplace safer due to less obstruction and hazard from potentially sharp pieces, but it’s also good to simply have it out the door.

Therefore, for practical reasons, it’s almost always better to sell your scrap copper now rather than later. The only reason to hold onto it is if you’re hoarding a vast quantity and expect its commodity price to go up significantly in the coming months and years.

Melbo Scrap Metal

If you’re looking to offload piles of scrap copper, come to Melbo Scrap Metal. Scrap copper and other metals ferrous and non-ferrous have their value, which is why we give you fair value and the peace of mind knowing that your metal scrap is out of sight and out of mind.