AP: Demand, price for copper, other metals go down
Copper prices have declined more than 70 percent since mid-2008, said Gene Rosenbaum, president of Southern Scrap & Waste Hauling in Pensacola.
As a result, local law enforcement agencies have reported fewer thefts of copper and other metals, Meanwhile, Rosenbaum and other haulers are struggling with a drop in demand for scrap.
Rosenbaum's 73-year-old business has weathered economic hard times before.
But with metal prices falling almost daily, the current economic situation could be the worst yet, he said.
"Aluminum has dropped 10 to 15 percent this week, and copper is down about 5 percent," Rosenbaum said.
Southern Scrap now pays between $1 and $1.25 a pound for scrap copper. At its highest, the price for scrap copper was about $4 a pound, Rosenbaum said. The current prices are similar to those in 2000, he said.
Copper hit record highs between May and July of 2008. But the prices began to erode about the first of September as the country slumped deeper into recession.
Current copper prices are more than 50 percent lower than six to eight months ago, Rosenbaum said.
"Like the rest of the economy, copper prices are dependent on manufacturing," he said. "If there is little demand for manufacturing, the mills don't need the raw product to produce cars, windows or tableware. Even the thieves don't want it."
Larry Meadows — a Sheriff's Office property crimes investigator specializing in copper theft — said there is a direct connection to a strengthening economy and an increase in copper thefts.
"When the economy goes back up, and they start building infrastructure, there will be more demand for the copper," Meadows said. "When the demand goes up, the price goes up, and theft goes up."
Better monitoring and stricter state laws regarding the sale of scrap metal also have decreased theft and made it more difficult for thieves to remain anonymous, Meadows said.
As of Oct. 1, anyone selling scrap metal in Florida is photographed along with the items being sold, Meadows said.
"The vehicle they're driving is documented, and all their personal information is taken," he said.
