Smash Scrap Morning Metals Report – August 26, 2026
Prices as of August 26, 2026 at 07:31 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.
All tracked metals are lower today.
Jump to:
- Gold — $4,627/oz ▼
- Silver — $68.96/oz ▼
- PGMs — Rh ▸ $8,800 · Pt ▸ $1,856 · Pd ▼ $1,316
- Copper — $6.70/lb ▼
- Aluminum — $1.47/lb ▸
- Steel Scrap — $413.00/mt ▸
- Macro Backdrop
- CAD — USD/CAD 1.3839
Smash Scrap Takeaways for Today
- Gold & Silver — With both drifting lower, tighten your assay, photos, and packing lists so buyers can’t nitpick and fade bids.
- PGMs — Palladium is still slipping while platinum and rhodium sit flat; move cats and cores on clean lots, don’t chase last month’s numbers.
- Copper — Price eased less than a cent after yesterday’s drop; keep moving #1/#2 and insulated while demand is still there, but don’t dump borderline material.
- Aluminum — Price is flat again; stick to shipping full, well-sorted loads and avoid fire-selling mixed or dirty aluminum just to clear space.
- Big Picture — 0 of 8 metals higher today, 4 lower and 4 flat, so expect buyers to stay picky and push hard on grading and paperwork.
Macro Backdrop — Energy and Risk
Brent Crude Oil: $85.27/bbl, down $0.8800 (-1.02%) day-over-day.
US Dollar Index (DXY): 98.95, up 0.15 (+0.15%) day-over-day.
**Energy is softer, but money is still tight. Risk-on mood stays fragile.**
Brent is trading around **$85**, down about 1% today, so fuel relief is small, not a trend yet. The **U.S. dollar is firm** (DXY near 99), and USD/CAD up near **1.38** keeps North American scrap more expensive for offshore buyers. Real 10-year yields sit above **2%**, which is still heavy for gold and other risk trades, even with the latest bond pullback.
The Fed hasn’t moved, but **rates are still high**, inflation is sticky, and auto output just slipped again. That mix keeps banks and traders cautious. Expect buyers to keep picking at risk, watching freight and currency on every load, not chasing it.
Gold — Safe-Haven Indicator
- Spot Gold (XAU): $4,627/oz, down $42.50 (-0.91%) day-over-day. Previous close: $4,670/oz.
- 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.
**Gold slipped today, but the story is still about tight money, not panic.** Spot gold is around **$4,627/oz**, down about **0.9%** on the day, even after rising in 4 of the last 5 sessions. With the dollar firm and money still tight, expect choppy prices, so lock in decent bids on clean, documented gold scrap when they’re on the table, not when you’re desperate to move cats and jewelry.
Silver — Industrial & Precious Hybrid
- Spot Silver (XAG): $68.96/oz, down $0.0940 (-0.14%) day-over-day. Previous close: $69.05/oz.
- 5-day trend: ↑ 4 of last 5 sessions.
- Gold/Silver ratio: 67.1:1.
**Silver’s still firm, even with today’s tiny dip.** Silver’s sitting around $69/oz, down about 9 cents, but it’s been up 4 of the last 5 sessions. With the dollar still firm and money tight, don’t expect a moonshot, but this tape still supports steady flows of silver scrap and e‑scrap if your loads are clean and documented.
Precious Metals (PGM) — Screen Indicators
- Platinum (Pt): $1,856/oz, flat day-over-day. Previous close: $1,856/oz. MoM: +14.9%.
- Platinum 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.
- Palladium (Pd): $1,316/oz, down $3.00 (-0.23%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1,319/oz. MoM: +3.5%.
- 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.
PGM prices are mixed today, so you need to be picky with how you sell. Platinum is firm and has inched higher this week, but palladium keeps slipping and rhodium is just sitting flat, so expect buyers to lean on tight money and push harder on cats where the numbers don’t pencil clean.
Copper — Current Indicators
- COMEX/Spot Copper: $6.70/lb, down $0.0095 (-0.14%) day-over-day. Previous close: $6.71/lb.
- 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.
Copper is holding near **$6.70/lb**, down a hair today but still firm after rising in 3 of the last 5 sessions. Money is still tight and the dollar is strong, so expect buyers to stay picky on #1, #2, and insulated. Use this strength to move clean, well-documented copper, and be ready for tougher bids if the next move is down.
Aluminum — Current Indicators
- LME Aluminum: $3,243/tonne ($1.47/lb), flat day-over-day. Previous close: $1.47/lb.
- 5-day trend: → flat over last 5 sessions.
Aluminum is sitting around **$1.47/lb** and has been flat for days, even with Brent at **$85.27/bbl** and money still tight. With no real move in the tape, you don’t need to panic-sell; focus on shipping full, clean, well-documented loads and let buyers compete for the good cats and non‑ferrous when you do post.
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.
