SMASH Recycling Morning Metals Report – July 29, 2026

Prices as of July 29, 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.

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• Gold — $4,016/oz ▲
• Silver — $57.06/oz ▲
• PGMs — Rh ▸ $8,250 · Pt ▼ $1,575 · Pd ▼ $1,222
• Copper — $6.30/lb ▼
• Aluminum — $1.44/lb ▲
• Steel Scrap — $413.00/mt ▸
• Macro Backdrop
• CAD — USD/CAD 1.4102

SMASH Recycling Takeaways for Today

• Gold & Silver — Keep moving clean gold and silver scrap on normal cadence; prices are high but today’s moves are noise, not trend.
• PGMs — With platinum and palladium slipping and rhodium flat, don’t sit on cats; build full, well-documented lots and auction instead of gambling on a bounce.
• Copper — At $6.30 and drifting lower, don’t panic-sell; tighten grades, avoid overpaying on inbound, and use auctions to test real demand before cutting yard scales.
• Aluminum — Aluminum’s ticking up again; prioritize sorting and baling higher-grade aluminum, and push out ready loads while buyers are paying a bit more.
• Big Picture — Only 2 of 8 metals are higher today, so treat this as a mixed, choppy tape and let competition, not gut feel, set your sell levels.

Macro Backdrop — Energy and Risk

Brent Crude Oil: $89.80/bbl, up $2.01 (+2.29%) day-over-day.

US Dollar Index (DXY): 101.48, up 0.01 (+0.01%) day-over-day.

**Energy is hot, and that keeps risk alive.** Brent is back up to **$89.80** a barrel, and the U.S. dollar is still firm. That mix can lift freight, power, and hedge pressure across scrap flows, especially when mills are already watching margins closely.[10][13]

Rates are a little softer, but not enough to calm the board. The 10Y yield is **4.65%**, while inflation expectations sit near **2.20%**, so real yields stay positive. That keeps a lid on metals like gold and silver, and it can make buyers more cautious on big ticket scrap buys until the Fed gives clearer direction.[1][2][13]

Gold — Safe-Haven Indicator

• Spot Gold (XAU): $4,016/oz, up +$1.10 (+0.03%) day-over-day. Previous close: $4,015/oz.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.

**Gold is still rich, just not racing.** Gold is sitting around **$4,016/oz**, up a hair today and higher in 3 of the last 5 sessions. With energy strong and risk still on, you can keep moving clean gold scrap through the scale, but stay disciplined on bids and use the strong spot to lock in profit on tighter, well-documented lots.

Silver — Industrial & Precious Hybrid

• Spot Silver (XAG): $57.06/oz, up +$0.1425 (+0.25%) day-over-day. Previous close: $56.91/oz.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.
• Gold/Silver ratio: 70.4:1.

**Silver is still holding strong, just off recent highs.** Silver is at **$57.06/oz**, up about **14 cents** today, and it’s risen in **3 of the last 5 sessions**, even with a firm U.S. dollar and hot energy keeping risk trades alive. With the **gold/silver ratio near 70:1**, silver still looks cheap versus gold, so it’s a decent spot to move clean silver scrap if you’ve got cats, contacts, or bar/coin coming off the shelf.

Precious Metals (PGM) — Screen Indicators

• Platinum (Pt): $1,575/oz, down $21.00 (-1.32%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1,596/oz. MoM: -0.2%.
• Platinum 5-day trend: ↓ 4 of last 5 sessions.
• Palladium (Pd): $1,222/oz, down $21.00 (-1.69%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1,243/oz. MoM: +1.2%.
• Palladium 5-day trend: ↓ 4 of last 5 sessions.
• Rhodium (Rh): $8,250/oz, flat day-over-day. Previous close: $8,250/oz. MoM: +6.5%.
• Rhodium 5-day trend: ↑ 1 of last 5 sessions.

**PGMs are soft right now, so you need to sell smart, not desperate.** Platinum and palladium are both slipping again, with four down sessions in the last five days, while rhodium is just grinding sideways at much lower levels than a few years ago.[2][4] With the dollar firm and energy still hot, this is a choppy, buyers’ market for converters and PGM scrap, so stagger your loads, lean on good assay data, and use real buyer competition to avoid dumping cats into weak bids.[2][7]

Copper — Current Indicators

• COMEX/Spot Copper: $6.30/lb, down $0.0320 (-0.51%) day-over-day. Previous close: $6.33/lb.
• 5-day trend: ↓ 3 of last 5 sessions.

**Copper slipped, but you’re still looking at strong money.** Copper is around **$6.30/lb**, down about 3 cents and lower in **3 of the last 5** sessions. With energy still hot and Brent at **$89.80**, risk is still on, so keep moving clean copper, but stay picky on what you buy and don’t chase every pound.

Aluminum — Current Indicators

• LME Aluminum: $3,185/tonne ($1.44/lb), up +$0.0165 (+1.16%) day-over-day. Previous close: $1.43/lb.
• 5-day trend: ↑ 3 of last 5 sessions.

**Aluminum is up, and buyers are still in the game.** Exchange aluminum is around **$1.44/lb**, about 2 cents higher today, and it’s been up in **3 of the last 5** sessions. With energy staying hot and Brent crude near **$89.80**, mills still have reason to chase metal, so you should keep clean, sorted aluminum ready to move when local yard bids line up.

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 Recycling and let vetted Canadian buyers compete for your scrap.