2019 Recycling Industry Yearbook

Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, Inc. 32 4.90 5.40 5.90 6.40 $6.90 NICKEL & STAINLESS STEEL PRICE AND SCRAP VOLUMES Any stainless steel object contains an average of 60% recycled material: 25% old scrap and 35% new scrap. U.S. AND EXPORT MARKETS The United States recycled 140,000 mt of old and new nickel scrap in 2018, up 55% from 2017 , according to USGS. That supply met 52% of U.S. nickel manufacturing needs, up from 39% in 2017. Although global nickel prices fluctuated over the course of the year, the London Metal Exchange three-month average price for nickel was 26% higher in 2018 than in 2017. U.S. stainless steel scrap exports totaled 778,000 in 2018, up 59% from 2017. Canada, Taiwan, India, China, and Mexico were the largest markets for U.S. stainless steel scrap. About 46% of U.S. stainless scrap exports went to Canada and Mexico last year , more than double the amount buyers in those countries purchased in 2017. China and Hong Kong, in contrast, imported about 47% less stainless steel scrap in 2018 than they did in 2017. Source: International Stainless Steel Forum