The Chinese welded pipe market has remained sluggish over the past two weeks since demand from both local and foreign buyers has shown no signs of being released. Domestic prices of welded pipes have decreased by RMB 10-90/mt ($3-16/mt) over the past two weeks, while export offers have declined by $20-30/mt during the same period. Downstream end-user demand is shrinking due to tighter liquidity, poor economic conditions and the suspension of some construction projects during the winter season. Market players expect that welded pipe prices may follow a trend of slight fluctuations in the period ahead as the market is entering the off-season and is not likely to revive in the coming short-term period.
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 3,550-3,700/mt ($578-603/mt) ex-works, while domestic offers of welded pipes of grade Q195-235 are at levels of RMB 3,000-3,350/mt ($489-546/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 3,030-3,170/mt ($494-516/mt) ex-warehouse, while stockists in the cities of Tianjin and Beijing are offering similar pipes at RMB 2,900-2,980/mt ($472-485/mt) ex-warehouse.
Current export prices of welded pipes from large Chinese mills, 2"-10" grade B according to ASTM A53, are at around $530-550/mt FOB on actual weight basis.
$1 = RMB 6.13