Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based US Steel's tubular segment reported its best quarter since 2008 in Q3 as demand remained firm and rig counts continued to rise over the quarter, according to the company's press release Tuesday. Steel pipe shipments were up about 10 percent in Q3 and tubular segment income soared to $134 million compared to $31 million in Q2 and $113 million in Q3 of last year. Average prices were up as well due to higher selling prices for both welded and seamless products and lower flat rolled prices.
During the question-and-answer portion of the call, US Steel Chairman and CEO John Surma explained that imports in the tubular market remain high; "it's almost half the market," he said, and some of the products are "way, way unfairly traded." Nonetheless, with the higher US and Canadian rig count, there's been sufficient demand to absorb it. There's "a good bit of work going on," Surma explained, which is keeping the company busy.