Wire prices - through the roof!

belfert · March 17, 2011, 04:11:15 PM

I decided I better order my 8AWG today before Skycraft Surplus decided to raise the price again. Over $50 for 90 feet of wire!

I knew copper prices are high, but it didn't really strike me until I was looking through my wire supply in my garage. I found a 100 foot roll of 10 AWG wire that I bought within the last two years from Skycraft Surplus. It had a $17 price tag on it. Skycraft Surplus wants $38 for that same roll of wire today.

The price has at least doubled in two years! I wish my pay had increased any in the last two years let alone doubled! I know that retailers and manufacturers aren't really making any extra money. The guy who actually owns the copper coming out of the ground is making all the money.

At least I use a lot less copper than petroleum. Petroleum is about triple what it was at the lowest point in 2008 or 2009 after the price crashed.

wal1809 · March 17, 2011, 04:14:56 PM

Copper went up 200 % in recent years. I have been thinking about trading cash from the bank (US dollar down 34 % in two years) and buying bricks of copper, silver and gold and putting it in the gun safe. If I would have placed all my cash into gold 5 years ago I would be a happy dude today.

happycamperbrat · March 17, 2011, 04:15:59 PM

The price of most ALL metals is going thru the roof! From what I understand it is because of the economy, investers are putting their money into metals right now and that raises the prices.

challenger440 · March 17, 2011, 04:24:11 PM

At Lowes, a 100 foot roll of 12 stranded went from 59.85 to 75. last week. Wished I'd bought 2 weeks ago. jm

belfert · March 17, 2011, 04:38:30 PM

I remember when copper was rising rapidly in 2007 or 2008. I bought some wire at Home Depot for a project at home. The employee helping me said that copper wire bought at retail 6 months previously could have been sold for scrap for more it cost new! I think copper prices now are much higher than back then.

Everyone is thinking they should precious metals a few years, but would you feel if the prices had fallen 50% instead of doubled.

Those guys on the TV show Gold Rush Alaska thought they would strike it rich mining gold, but they ended up with $14,000 in gold and over $275,000 spent. I do wonder just how much money they really lost as Discovery must have paid them something to film the show. That TV show struck it big in the ratings and there will be a second season of mining no doubt probably paid mostly by Discovery.

Chopper Scott · March 17, 2011, 04:56:04 PM

I have to keep on top of steel prices constantly and have had to for many years. I can honestly say that for a period of some 20 years that the price never changed back in the 80's. Now you never know and I basically check the price weekly on every load. Scrap prices tend to tip me off as to the future and they have risen dramatically lately. Here we go again! I have been making some brackets and such for a local farmer on his new tractor. The price tag on that new John Deere..... $230,000. There are a lot of local guys that may have 4 or more. That doesn't include planters and equipment that you would need or the tractor is basically useless! Then combines and such, trucks, and on and on. It is a boom time in the agricultural industry. Basically the only industry other than weapon manufacturing that the United States does better than anyone else.

Jeremy · March 17, 2011, 05:10:27 PM

Apparently a very smart thing to buy and horde now is - wait for it - rechargeable batteries. Apparently 40% of the world's production capacity was in Sendai.

You'll struggle to buy a new Nissan Leaf or Toyota Prius for a while too.

Jeremy

belfert · March 17, 2011, 06:04:23 PM

Quote from: challenger440 on March 17, 2011, 04:24:11 PM
At Lowes, a 100 foot roll of 12 stranded went from 59.85 to 75. last week. Wished I'd bought 2 weeks ago. jm

Single conductor stranded? Even marine wire in 12 AWG doesn't cost anywhere near $75 for 100 feet.

challenger440 · March 17, 2011, 06:25:37 PM

Sorry,, 500 feet. j

JohnEd · March 17, 2011, 06:39:47 PM

A year ago I read that the standard of living for the "middle" of the middle class had fallen to that of 1976. Since then the price of everything I eat or otherwise use has doubled. I still hear that the number one issue with the Fed reserve is heading off inflation. Well God bless there little hearts for thinking of me but those same folks keep saying that the inflation is under 5%. Remember when Greenspan told congress that using a different formula to compute inflation would ease the "burden" of SS? SS recipients got shorted on cola since then (many years) and that yard stick still measures a measly 12 inches.

They are blaming China for this inflation of raw materials prices. Those corrupt Asian people must be at it again(sarcasm). The price of fuel went up over 100% the past year due to demand. That earthquake in Japan has caused a glut in the oil market and that $100+/brl oil,m has dropped considerably on the world market. 4 Days after the announcement my front page headlines said that gas had gone up 20 cents a gallon. No matter what happens those oil companies just keep gouge'n and hike'n. AND EXXON Mobile STILL pays no taxes in the USA and is the richest corp on planet Earth with never ending record profits year after year. Or so I read in that same paper and it is owned by the most conservative family in all of Orygun. Me? I love fuel.

The price of copper doubled nearly over night when Anaconda shut down the copper mines in Montana(?) and started operations in Chile's newly acquired mine's after the revolution that installed the Military regime and ousted that "socialist" that went ahead and got himself elected in spite of warnings by the minority(military). After the junta locked him in his house he blew his brains out and they have eye witnesses from the army that will swear to it.

Nothing will dissuade these price advances as long as the Robber Barons have control and go untaxed. The conditions we are facing now are called "Trickle Down Economics". How are you doing with that?

John

belfert · March 17, 2011, 07:08:43 PM

So-called "core inflation" doesn't include food or fuel. That is probably why they claim inflation isn't up that much.

I haven't seen the food I buy go up anywhere near double recently. This doesn't mean prices aren't up. I haven't had a pay raise in 4 years, but overall my total cost of living is pretty much flat over that time. It would probably be down if it wasn't for the recent increases in fuel costs.

I don't use much medical care or my costs would be way up. My medical insurance has gone from no deductible to a sizeable one plus I pay 20% of my care over the past 4 or 5 years.

buswarrior · March 17, 2011, 07:13:50 PM

Did you miss the little bit about the American dollar has dropped in value?

Of course everything tied to world prices is way up, your dollar is worth way less.....

Inflation is a calculated number... based on steady values...

The US dollar is far from steady in value...

The two, they shall not meet.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

belfert · March 17, 2011, 07:24:14 PM

I was inspired to buy my wire today instead of waiting after I read that copper prices are increasing due to the disaster in Japan. Investors are bidding up copper because they believe demand will go up due to the anticipated rebuilding. The Japanese probably won't need wire for several months as it takes a while to get that point in the rebuilding process.

I didn't think the price was going to up right away, but I figured a month or two down the road it might be up.

Charley Davidson · March 18, 2011, 09:27:05 AM

Think I'll get busy on my smelting furnace build so I can make some bricks of copper, I'm sure it's gonna hit $4.00 very soon.

wal1809 · March 18, 2011, 12:41:33 PM

Quote from: belfert on March 17, 2011, 04:38:30 PM
I remember when copper was rising rapidly in 2007 or 2008. I bought some wire at Home Depot for a project at home. The employee helping me said that copper wire bought at retail 6 months previously could have been sold for scrap for more it cost new! I think copper prices now are much higher than back then.Everyone is thinking they should precious metals a few years, but would you feel if the prices had fallen 50% instead of doubled.
Those guys on the TV show Gold Rush Alaska thought they would strike it rich mining gold, but they ended up with $14,000 in gold and over $275,000 spent. I do wonder just how much money they really lost as Discovery must have paid them something to film the show. That TV show struck it big in the ratings and there will be a second season of mining no doubt probably paid mostly by Discovery.

Financially they would have done a lot better if they would have bought $250,000 in gold and waited 10 years. I can see where you can't put a price on an adventure like that though. I wouldn't go into hock hoping to strike gold. I would go up there and dig for it though. That would be a lot of work but an adventure of a lifetime. What I was talking about doing was selling everything I am not using and turning it into silver and gold.