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[0:20]
Brett: All right, another Metal Monday! A little green in the pasture today—not a slaughterhouse.
Nick: Yeah, dude. PGMs are getting some love this morning, which is great for the converter business. It’s been a rough couple of weeks, but things are picking up.
Brett: Copper got a little boost—it’s around $4.09 or $4.10 now.
Nick: Yep, back above $4.10. It looked like we were going to dip below. Aluminum got a lot of love on Friday, too, after the Chinese announced they’re not giving tax incentives for either exporting or importing aluminum—either way, it’s reducing supply.
Brett: Yeah, that’s creating some uncertainty for smelters and consumers, which bumped aluminum prices. Nickel is still struggling, around $7.00, and lead is just kind of doing its thing.
Nick: So, it’ll be an interesting finish to the year, but I don’t see any massive moves unless something crazy happens—which is always possible with everything going on.
Brett: True. Do you think we’ll end the year with copper above $4?
Nick: You’re just trying to bait me into a bet.
Brett: Yeah, exactly!
Nick: I think so.
Brett: Okay, what about above $4.30?
Nick: End of the year—December 31st?
Brett: Yep.
Nick: I’ll take the under.
Brett: Over $4.30.
Nick: $1 million?
Brett: Let’s keep it to $100.
Nick: Deal. But it’s got to finish above $4.30 on December 31st—no mid-month spikes count.
Brett: Fair. All right, let’s see what happens.
[2:52]
Brett: Winter is officially here in Idaho. Some of our southeast yards got a good amount of snow yesterday.
Nick: Yeah, we got a light sprinkling at my house—nothing that stuck, but winter is definitely here.
Brett: Winter usually helps the ferrous scrap market. December’s basically a two-week month anyway, with Christmas and New Year’s landing mid-week. Those weeks are pretty much gone for shipping, so we’ve got about three good weeks left in the year.
Nick: Yeah, Thanksgiving cuts off Thursday and Friday next week, but it’s not as disruptive as Christmas.
Brett: True. I saw a meme that said, “Christmas is a holiday, not a season. Stop trying to make it a whole [ __ ] season.”
Nick: Ha! But cold weather does help ferrous scrap prices—less scrap flow and tougher conditions to move inventory.
Brett: Exactly. The flow slows down until people get fed up with the cold and bring their material in. Hopefully, we’ll see good ferrous prices in December and January.
[4:47]
Nick: I’ve been talking to manufacturers, and they’re really optimistic about next year. That should bring more demand to the table.
Brett: I’ve heard the same. Since Trump got elected, I’ve noticed a spike in optimism—more quotes, interest, and positive energy from people manufacturing everything from widgets to large equipment. It’s encouraging for what’s to come.
Nick: That’s great to hear.
Brett: Yeah, the rest of this year might feel a bit slow, but I think we’re set up for some big changes in January with the new administration. I’m optimistic about the business environment—it feels like there’s a lot of positive momentum.
Nick: Agreed. If things follow through, scrap, steel, aluminum, copper, PGMs—all of it will be in demand.
[6:38]
Nick: Next week is Thanksgiving, my favorite week of the year.
Brett: Same here. Last year during Thanksgiving, we were doing 75 Hard, and it was miserable. This year, I’m definitely having a beer on Thanksgiving.
Nick: Ha! Yeah, I’m looking forward to some good food, football, and just relaxing.
Brett: Me too. Did you see that Netflix is streaming a football game on Christmas this year?
Nick: Yeah, but they really messed up with their streams over the weekend. Did you watch the Tyson fight?
Brett: I tried to, but I couldn’t get it to stream.
Nick: Same. I ended up watching a couple of rounds on my phone—it was garbage.
Brett: Yeah, I streamed it on my phone, too. The undercard was good, though. That girl fight was awesome.
Nick: Agreed. That fight stole the show.
[7:57]
Brett: All right, everyone, have a great week! And just a heads-up—Thanksgiving is the week after next, not next week.
Nick: You’re right. We’ve got a full month left.
Brett: Thanks, everyone. Take care!
[8:17]
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