Obviously the price of aluminum scrap is a function of the spot price (
Kitco - Spot Aluminum Historical Charts and Graphs - Aluminum charts - Industrial metals), regardless of the huge cut most yards get for being a middleman. For a yard to say the prices are going down for the summer is silly since "the summer" has nothing to do with the manipulated spot market, which went up from 77 cents to 87 cents over a month ago for no apparent reason and then down from 87 cents to 77 in a matter of days, also for no apparent reason (other than it allowed some big players to push up so they could sell for a profit). Long term, say 3 or 4 years out, the price could be up significantly because more and more aluminum will probably be pulled by automakers who have a federal mandate to increase fuel efficiency, and thereby use lighter aluminum. Last I checked the new Ford F-150, using 800lbs of aluminum, was selling like gangbusters, but even it it wasn't they still have to replace the steel in cars with aluminum going forward. Another plus for aluminum is that is a tangible asset not susceptible to a currency collapse. And the main negative for the price of spot for all industrial metals is the potential for a depression-like collapse after hyperinflation.
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