The Bulgarian welded pipe market still shows no signs of recovery. Demand from domestic buyers remains extremely low, forcing producers of welded pipes to reduce domestic prices by €10-30/mt ($13-38/mt) over the past two weeks, while export quotations have declined by €10/mt over the same period due to better demand from other European countries. However, buyers continue to insist on further discounts as there are no positive developments in the market. Meanwhile, Bulgarian pipe producers will likely maintain their quotations at current levels on the back of high production costs.
Current offers of locally produced welded pipes and hollow sections of 2-5 mm wall thickness made from S235JR grade hot rolled coil (HRC) according to EN 10219 are being given to the Bulgarian domestic market at around €550-560/mt ($704-716/mt) ex-works, exclusive of 20 percent VAT and on theoretical weight basis.
Export quotations of Bulgarian ERW pipes and hollow sections of 2-5 mm wall thickness made from S235JR grade HRC as per EN 10219 are at the level of €500-510/mt ($640-652/mt) ex-works on theoretical weight basis for May production, and at €520-530/mt ($665-678/mt) ex-works for lots less than 1,000 mt. Export offers of similar Bulgarian pipes with wall thickness of 1.5 mm made from HRC as per EN 10219 are at around €530-560/mt ($678-716/mt) ex-works. Export quotations of Bulgarian water and gas pipes according to EN 10255 are at €520-540/mt ($665-691/mt) ex-works.
€1 = $1.279