In the first quarter of the current year, imports of stainless steel seamless tubes into Russia declined by 47.5 percent year on year to just 2,128 mt, according to the data issued by the Russian Special Steel and Alloys Consumers and Suppliers Association (Spetsstal). The most imported product was cold-deformed seamless tube (customs code 730441) with a share of over 59.3 percent in the total, compared to a 45.9 percent share in the first quarter last year.
The top suppliers of stainless steel seamless tubes to Russia in the first quarter this year were Ukraine with a 48.7 percent share of the overall supply (compared to 32.8 percent in Q1 2013), China with a 25.4 percent share (9.8 percent in Q1 2013), South Korea with an 8.4 percent share (0.4 percent in Q1 2013), India with 7.2 percent (0.1 percent), and Malaysia with 3.6 percent (down from a 49.4 percent share in Q1 2013).