The Chinese seamless pipe market has been quiet over the past two weeks amid slow buying activity. Chinese mills have kept their domestic seamless pipe quotations unchanged over the past two weeks, while traders have cut their offers by a maximum of RMB 50/mt ($7/mt) over the same period amid slack demand and the uncertain market outlook. Export offers of seamless pipes from Chinese exporters have remained unchanged over the period under review amid low buying interest from foreign customers. The market is unlikely to see any sharp recovery in prices in the short run given the soft demand, lower feedstock costs and tight liquidity.
Domestic prices of seamless pipes, 2"-8" grade B as per ASTM A106/API 5L, are at around RMB 6,000-6,100/mt ($974-990/mt) ex-works, including 17 percent VAT. Chinese domestic prices of 2"-6" seamless pipes according to GB/8162-8163 are varying at around RMB 5,000-5,100/mt ($811-828/mt) ex-works. Chinese ex-stock prices for 2"-8" seamless pipes according to GB/8162-8163 in Shanghai are at around RMB 3,850-4,050/mt ($625-657/mt) ex-warehouse, including 17 percent VAT, while traders in Tianjin and Beijing are offering the same pipes at around RMB 3,800-4,100/mt ($617-665/mt) ex-warehouse.
Current export quotations from most Chinese manufacturers for 2"-6" grade B seamless pipes according to ASTM A106/API 5L are on average at $660-695/mt FOB.
$1 = RMB 6.16