China's domestic welded pipe market has trended downwards over the past three weeks amid seasonally sluggish demand. Domestic welded pipe prices of producers in China have dropped by RMB 20-50/mt ($3-8/mt) over the past three weeks, while Chinese traders have cut their offers for local buyers by RMB 130-200/mt ($21-32/mt) over the period under review. China's welded pipe export prices have declined by $20-40/mt as most foreign buyers have stayed on the sidelines amid the holiday period and the post-holiday market lull. Since demand from both local and overseas customers remains soft and as China's Spring Festival is around the corner, market participants consider that the market is unlikely to see an improvement in the short term.
Current offers of locally produced 2"-6" welded pipes of grade B as per ASTM A53 are being given to the Chinese domestic market at an average of RMB 3,500-3,650/mt ($564-588/mt) ex-works, while domestic offers of welded pipes of grade Q195-235 are at levels of RMB 3,000-3,250/mt ($483-523/mt) ex-works. These local market welded pipe prices include 17 percent VAT.
Traders in Shanghai are offering Q215-Q235 welded pipes made to GB/T3091 at around RMB 2,800-3,000/mt ($451-483/mt) ex-warehouse, while stockists in the cities of Tianjin and Beijing are offering similar pipes at RMB 2,580-2,820/mt ($415-454/mt) ex-warehouse.
Current export prices of welded pipes from large Chinese mills, 2"-10" grade B according to ASTM A53, are at around $490-530/mt FOB on actual weight basis.
$1 = RMB 6.21