Nonferrous

America has gone a full decade or more (depending on which indicator one uses) without a recession. And certainly, in an election year, very few people want to utter the “r” word and break the unprecedented streak.

Those in the metals business, however, would be skeptical of the notion that the last 10 years have been smooth sailing without any down cycles.

The nonferrous metals segment has seen its share of downward spirals in the 1990s, and the current period certainly feels like a trough to some processors.

“It just seems like a lot harder work to keep material flowing both in and out than it was just a couple of years ago,” says one nonferrous processor. “It reminds me of the 1982-1983 recession,” he adds.

Even during quarters and years in the 1990s when the American economy exhibited growth, the metals industry was not always part of that growth equation. The global recession in the late ‘90s that did not affect the majority of American households did have an impact on American scrap processors and others in the metals industry.

For nonferrous processors, the “recessionary” conditions are at both ends of the scrap chain—buying and selling material.

The prevalence of offshore manufacturing may be a factor in difficulties procuring prompt industrial scrap. But increased competition (from both domestic scrap companies and export brokers) is a non-recession-related factor that is also part of the picture.