Smash Scrap Morning Metals Report – August 25, 2026

Prices as of August 25, 2026 at 07:32 AM CDT.

Market screen levels only — not yard pay prices. Actual buy prices at the scale will differ based on grade, moisture, contamination, and freight. The scrolling ticker at the top of this page shows live prices and may differ from the snapshot below.

Jump to:

• Gold — $4,636/oz ▼
• Silver — $67.98/oz ▼
• PGMs — Rh ▸ $8,800 · Pt ▼ $1,843 · Pd ▼ $1,309
• Copper — $6.64/lb ▲
• Aluminum — $1.46/lb ▼
• Steel Scrap — $413.00/mt ▸
• Macro Backdrop
• CAD — USD/CAD 1.3842

Smash Scrap Takeaways for Today

• Gold & Silver — Move clean, documented lots now. These markets are down, and waiting can hand back spread. Separate gold-bearing and silver-bearing scrap. Get weights, photos, and BOLs tight before you call buyers.
• PGMs — Hold only if the lot is strong. Platinum and palladium are both lower, so weak mix and dirty catalyst grades need to move fast. Use photo docs and serials where you have them. Buyers pay more attention when the file is clean.
• Copper — Price is up. If you have bare bright, number 1, or clean red brass, get it in front of buyers now. Do not sit on borderline copper and hope for more. Market can turn fast.
• Aluminum — Clear mixed and dirty aluminum while bids are still workable. The move is small, but the trend is soft. Clean alloy gets better attention than garbage mixed in with it. Sort harder before you sell.
• Big Picture — Only 1 of 8 metals is higher today, so sellers should focus on fast turns, tight grading, and competitive bids.

Macro Backdrop — Energy and Risk

Brent Crude Oil: $87.98/bbl, down $4.09 (-4.44%) day-over-day.

US Dollar Index (DXY): 99.02, up 0.12 (+0.12%) day-over-day.

**Oil just dropped over 4% in a day. That’s not nothing.**

Brent is back under $90, down about 4.5% to **$87.98**. Cheaper fuel can help shred and trucking costs, but fast moves like this also signal risk and demand worries. Yields keep creeping up, with the 10-year near **4.74%**, while inflation expectations sit around **2.3%**. The Fed rate is still parked at **3.63%**, so higher real yields keep a lid on gold, even with all the “debasement trade” talk in the headlines.

The dollar is mixed: DXY is a touch higher near **99**, while the broader USD index has eased a bit. More buyers see gold as a safety valve, but real yields at **+2.4%** still bite. For your yard, lower oil plus a firm but not screaming dollar means energy is less of a headwind, but risk is still on the table.

Gold — Safe-Haven Indicator

• Spot Gold (XAU): $4,636/oz, down $24.50 (-0.53%) day-over-day. Previous close: $4,660/oz.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.

**Gold is taking a breather today, but the trend is still your friend.** Gold is at **$4,636/oz**, down about **0.5%** on the day, even as it’s been up in **4 of the last 5 sessions**. With the dollar a bit stronger and oil dropping over 4% to around **$88/bbl**, some heat is coming out of the trade, but high prices mean you should stay on top of your gold-bearing scrap, document your cats and boards well, and be ready to move clean, sorted material when buyers step up.

Silver — Industrial & Precious Hybrid

• Spot Silver (XAG): $67.98/oz, down $1.04 (-1.51%) day-over-day. Previous close: $69.02/oz.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.
• Gold/Silver ratio: 68.2:1.

Silver is **down to about $68/oz today**, giving back 1.5% after a strong run. The pullback lines up with a firmer dollar and a quick drop in oil, so some hot money is stepping back. For you, that means clean, documented silver scrap and coins still move, but this is a “check bids twice” day, not a chase day.

Precious Metals (PGM) — Screen Indicators

• Platinum (Pt): $1,843/oz, down $36.00 (-1.92%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1,879/oz. MoM: +16.3%.
• Platinum 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.
• Palladium (Pd): $1,309/oz, down $33.00 (-2.46%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1,342/oz. MoM: +6.7%.
• Palladium 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.
• Rhodium (Rh): $8,800/oz, flat day-over-day. Previous close: $8,800/oz. MoM: +6.7%.
• Rhodium 5-day trend: → flat over last 5 sessions.

PGMs are softer today, so don’t chase price on cats if you don’t have to move them. Platinum and palladium are down on the day even after several up sessions, while rhodium is flat, and with oil pulling back and the dollar a bit stronger, buyers may lean harder on spreads this week.

Copper — Current Indicators

• COMEX/Spot Copper: $6.64/lb, up +$0.0300 (+0.45%) day-over-day. Previous close: $6.61/lb.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.

Copper is back on the front foot, up to **$6.64/lb** and green in 4 of the last 5 sessions. The move is small today, but the trend is up, even with a stronger dollar and cheaper oil taking some heat out of the macro. If you passed on clean copper last week, buyers may be a bit hungrier for your next load now.

Aluminum — Current Indicators

• LME Aluminum: $3,214/tonne ($1.46/lb), down $0.0020 (-0.14%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1.46/lb.
• 5-day trend: ↓ 3 of last 5 sessions.

**Aluminum is soft again, and the tape is telling you to move the junk.** It’s at **$1.46/lb**, down a hair, with **3 of the last 5 sessions lower**. If you’re sitting on mixed or dirty aluminum, this is not the time to guess.

Steel Scrap (Shredded (SHS), scrapmonster) — Current Indicators

• Steel Scrap Shredded (SHS) (SCRAP-SHS): $413.00/mt, flat day-over-day. Previous close: $413.00/mt.
• 5-day trend: → flat over last 5 sessions.
• HMS 1&2 (80:20) (SCRAP-HM): $366.00/mt (flat day-over-day).

Want to move PGM-bearing material, copper, aluminum, or steel scrap through competitive bidding? List your lots on Smash Scrap and let vetted buyers compete for your scrap.