Conditions in the Italian welded pipe market have not changed for the better over the past month. Welded pipe demand from both local and foreign customers remains sluggish amid lack of funds as well as low investment inflow in consuming industries. Over the past month, Italian suppliers of welded pipes have cut their domestic and export offers by €30-50/mt ($52-76/mt). At the same time, Bulgarian suppliers have left their prices unchanged at the previous levels, while Turkish producers have decreased their offers by €20-30/mt ($39-51/mt). Market insiders expect the buying activity to remain sluggish until September, taking into account the traditional holiday season in Europe.
Current local prices for Italian welded pipes of 2"-6" size with wall thickness of 2.0-4.0 mm as per EN 10219 made from base steel grade S235JR HR coils are at about €550-600/mt ($674-735/mt) ex-works. Prices are shown on actual weight basis and excluding 21 percent VAT. Domestic prices for standard-size precision welded tubes of E235 grade as per EN 10305-3 are at about €650-700/mt ($797-858/mt) ex-works.
Export quotations of Italian 2"-6" welded pipes as per EN 10219 are at about €580-630/mt ($711-772/mt) FOB (transportation by sea) or €550-600/mt ($674-735/mt) ex-works (transportation overland). In particular, offer prices for Spain are in the range of €590-650/mt ($723-797/mt) CPT.
Offers from Turkish suppliers of industrial welded pipes with 2-4 mm wall thickness made from HR coils are being given at an average of €600-620/mt ($735-760/mt) CFR to Italy and at €630-650/mt ($772-797/mt) CFR to Spain.
Offers of Bulgarian welded pipes to the Spanish market are standing at an average of €560-590/mt ($686-723/mt) CPT on theoretical weight basis.
€1 = $1.226