US crude oil barrel prices have ticked down an additional 3 percent this week, and the November 3 price of $75.84 per-barrel marks a three-year low. Financial analysts say that Saudi Arabia cutting export prices to the US may be a power play to temper the US domestic drilling industry, as sustained low prices will have less of an impact on Saudi oil producers, who pay about half of what US shale oil drillers pay to extract a barrel of oil. Sources close to SteelOrbis have been quick to point out that this could have a negative impact on US energy pipe markets, noting that ConocoPhillips has already announced plans to scale back some of its drilling projects.
For now, however, the situation is trending at watch-and-wait. The most commonly reported US domestic prices for finished J55 ERW oil country tubular goods (OCTG) casing remains at $59.00-$61.00 cwt. ($1,300-$1344/mt or $1,180-$1,220/nt) ex-Midwest mill, while futures prices from Taiwanese producers for unfinished J55 ERW OCTG casing have held in the approximate range of $46.00-$47.00 cwt. ($1,014-$1,036/mt or $920-$940/nt, DDP loaded truck in US Gulf coast ports. Korean offers for unfinished J55 ERW OCTG casing have also trended sideways and remain in the approximate range of $49.00-$50.00 cwt. ($1,080-$1,102/mt or $980-$1,000/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf coast ports.