Russia's steel pipe output up 14.2 percent in Q1

The Federal State Statistic Service of Russian Federation has reported that the country's steel pipe output rose 14.2 percent year on year to 1.67 million tons in the first quarter of 2006. Out of the total volume, the production of seamless pipe decreased 0.1 percent to 676,200 tons, while that of electro-welded pipes increased 28.2 percent to 957,300 tons. In addition, the statistical data shows that the output of steel pipe raised 21 percent to 613,800 tons month on month in March 2006.