During the past month, Italian producers' domestic welded pipe prices have increased by 7-8 percent. At the same time, local hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in the Italian market are unchanged and show no signs of weakness. Accordingly, domestic welded pipe prices are still strong even if pipe producers have been finding it difficult to pass on previous increases in HRC prices to their customers.
Another problem for Italian pipe producers is the delay in HRC deliveries, especially for some sizes, and this situation forces them to deal with a wider range of suppliers.
In the meantime, demand remains stable at medium-to-low levels, with many customers concluding deals just to meet their short-term needs.
Domestic producers' prices of welded tubes of 2" diameter with 3 mm thickness as per EN 10219 stand at €560-570/mt ($633-644/mt), while prices of 1"-4" welded pipes for water and gas as per EN10255 stand at €620-640/mt ($701-723/mt), both ex-works.
€1 = $1.13