Korean energy pipe producers are still trying to manage their appeal of OCTG dumping duties and sort through the recent line pipe case filing; some have speculated that while all that in the meantime, Korean mills may become more aggressive when it comes to offer prices for Grade A electric residence weld (ERW) black plain end (BPE) standard pipe. “You may see some of the mills start to peddle standard pipe a bit more heavily,” according to one Texas-based trader source, “but on the other side, it’s hard to pinpoint how much more aggressive they may get.”
At the current time, however, prices have remained lateral across the board. Futures prices from Taiwan have held in the approximate range of $38.50-$39.50 cwt. ($849-$871/mt or $770-$790/nt) DDP loaded truck in
US Gulf Coast ports, while Vietnamese prices are still trending approximately $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) higher and Korean prices available for $2.00 cwt. ($44/mt or $40/nt) higher, both DDP loaded truck in
US Gulf coast ports.
US domestic spot prices have also not wavered and continue to trend in the approximate range of $47.00-$48.00 cwt. ($1,036-$1,058/mt or $940-$960/nt) ex-Midwest mill, although sources close to SteelOrbis say that anyone with an attractive-sized order can negotiate deals up to $1.25 cwt. ($1,009/mt or $915/nt) below that range.