Buying activity in the Bulgarian welded pipe market has slowed down with the approach of the Christmas holidays. Meanwhile, producers have informed SteelOrbis that they are booked full with orders until March. Domestic and export quotations of Bulgarian welded pipes have stayed unchanged over the past two weeks. However, Bulgarian pipe makers are rather optimistic and state that they intend to raise their offers after the holidays by €15-20/mt amid rising quotations of flat steel.
Current offers of locally produced welded pipes and hollow sections of 2-5 mm wall thickness made from S235JR grade hot rolled coil (HRC) according to EN 10219 are being given to the Bulgarian domestic market at around €560-565/mt ($738-745/mt) ex-works, exclusive of 20 percent VAT and on theoretical weight basis.
Export quotations of Bulgarian ERW pipes and hollow sections of 2-5 mm wall thickness made from S235JR grade HRC as per EN 10219 are at the level of €530-540/mt ($699-712/mt) ex-works on theoretical weight basis for January-February production for small orders, and at €500-520/mt ($660-685/mt) ex-works for lots of over 1,000 mt. Offers of similar Bulgarian pipes with wall thickness of 1.5 mm made from HRC as per EN 10219 are at around €530-570/mt ($699-751/mt) ex-works for January-February rolling. Export quotations of Bulgarian water and gas pipes according to EN 10255 are at €520-560/mt ($685-738/mt) ex-works.
€1 = $1.32