Buying remains rather moderate in the Turkish welded pipe market, while demand coming from foreign markets is slack. Turkish welded pipe suppliers are finding it difficult to export to Europe due to currency fluctuations and aggressive offers given by other suppliers, while customers from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the US are showing just moderate interest in purchases. However, domestic and export quotations of Turkish welded pipes have decreased by around $10-20/mt over the past two weeks due to the downward trend in the hot rolled coil (HRC) segment. Market insiders believe welded pipe prices in Turkey will likely continue to slide down as HRC prices are forecast to move down further and as demand is expected to weaken during the summer season.
Most offers of Turkish ERW pipes and hollow sections with 2-4 mm wall thickness made from HRC of S235JR grade as per EN 10219 are being given to the domestic market at about $720-740/mt ex-works, while ERW pipes of 1.5 mm wall thickness made from cold rolled coil (CRC) are in the range of $800-820/mt ex-works. Water and gas ERW pipes of 2.0-4.5 mm wall thickness made to EN 10255/DIN 2440 from S235 grade HR products are being offered in the domestic market at $730-750/mt ex-works.
Turkish producers are offering ERW pipes and hollow sections made from HRC of steel grade S235 JRH as per EN 10219 to foreign customers at around $720-750/mt FOB. Water and gas ERW pipes of 2.0-4.5 mm wall thickness made to EN 10255 from S235 grade HR products are being offered for export at about $740-760/mt FOB.