Buying activity remains at minimal levels in the Polish welded pipe market due to the holiday season. Domestic prices of Polish welded pipes have moved down by around €30/mt ($40/mt) over the past month amid extremely poor demand from consuming industries. Quotations of Italian material for the Polish market have remained almost unchanged in euro terms, but have risen by $30/mt in US dollar terms. Meanwhile, Bulgarian suppliers have tried to raise their offers for Polish customers by around €50/mt ($66/mt) over the period in question citing the general improvement in sentiment. Market players believe that welded pipe prices in Poland may start to move up in the coming month driven by an anticipated recovery of consumer activity in the country, bullish sentiment among other European suppliers and a forecast price increase in the flat steel segment in the region.
Current domestic quotations of locally produced 3/8"-6" water and gas ERW pipes of 2.6-4.5 mm wall thickness made to EN 10255 are at €640-660/mt ($851-878/mt) delivered, exclusive of 23 percent VAT. Offers of square and rectangular hollow sections with 2-4 mm wall thickness made from S235 JRH grade hot rolled coil (HRC) according to EN 10219 are in the range of €520-550/mt ($692-731/mt) ex-works. ERW galvanized pipes made to EN 10240 are quoted for local customers at €830-850/mt ($1,104-1,130/mt) delivered.
Quotations of Italian black welded pipes of 2"-6" size with wall thickness of 2.0-4.0 mm as per EN 10219 made from S235JR grade HRC to the Polish market are at the level of €600-650/mt ($798-864/mt) CPT on actual weight basis.
Offers of Bulgarian ERW pipes and hollow sections of 2-5 mm wall thickness made from S235JR grade HRC as per EN 10219 to Polish customers are standing at an average of €580-600/mt ($771-798/mt) CPT on theoretical weight basis.
€1 = $1.33