In October, the sale of metal scrap by large collection and processing depots in Mexico decreased 15.9 percent, year-over-year, according to SteelOrbis analysis of data from the national statistics agency Inegi.
The current recessionary period began in July 2022 and until October of this year there are 16 months with a contraction in sales, representing the longest recessionary period in the last 15 years. In this period, five crisis periods are observed: one of nine months (January to September 2009), one of 12 months (November 2012 to October 2013), one of 13 months (July 2015 to July 2016), one 15 months (April 2019 to June 2020) and the current one.
The sale of metal scrap is of vital importance for the Mexican and global steel market. According to the steel company Deacero, which claims to be the largest metal scrap processor in Mexico, 95 percent of the steel it produces is from scrap as a raw material.
In the January-October period, the sale of wholesale scrap in the Mexican steel market decreased 25.1 percent, compared to the same period in 2022.
Inegi’s information corresponds to the trade with wholesale sales of waste materials, which includes the sale of metal scrap, glass, plastic, paper and cardboard, among other reusable waste. The reported drop corresponds to the total activities. Of that total, metal scrap concentrated 68.4 percent of the total sales of said industry.