In the Chinese market HRC prices are on an increasing trend due to rising prices for iron ore and coke and the positive sentiments in the market. Thus, China's Wuhan Steel has hiked April prices for HR and CR coils by RMB 300/mt ($45/mt) compared to its March prices. Prices for flat products from local steel giant Baosteel are expected to rise further, by about RMB 300/mt ($45/mt) for April. As a result, welded pipe producers in China have raised their quotations by RMB 100-400/mt ($15-60/mt) for local customers and by $60-100/mt for foreign consumers.
Current domestic prices of Chinese ERW pipes 2"-6" Q215-Q235 grade are at RMB 4,700-5,200/mt ($690-760/mt) ex-works. These local market prices include 17 percent VAT and are on actual weight basis.
Export offers of Chinese ERW pipes, 2"-6" with 4-5 mm wall thickness of steel grade B according to ASTM A53/API 5L, are being given at about $710-780/mt FOB.
Market players are optimistic about demand levels, which are improving in the domestic market with the warmer weather. International demand is also expected to grow due to the recovery in the international market. At the same time, there are still many uncertainties surrounding steel exports and national macroeconomic adjustments this year. Despite the high production levels, exports of welded pipes from China have continued to decline. China's welded pipe exports in January came to 196,320 mt, 8.9 percent less than in December and down 35.4 percent year on year. Nevertheless, China's Baosteel Group has lately won a tender to supply 200,000 mt of high quality pipes for the Queensland Curtis liquefied natural gas (LNG) welded pipe project in Australia, which includes 380 km of tubing connected to the ports.