There was not much movement in the Saudi Arabian welded pipe market over the past month due to the religious holiday. Prices of HRC materials stabilized and so the prices of welded pipes also became stable. At the same time, import offers of Chinese welded pipes have increased by $20/mt over the past month due to higher production costs in China. Welded pipe makers in Saudi Arabia think that HRC suppliers have filled their order books for 2010 and will be looking for new orders in the first quarter of next year. Market players expect that the prices of HRC materials may go down a little bit to allow for orders in the first quarter of 2011. This will allow Saudi pipe makers to make a price correction in line with real demand in the market. However, welded pipe market sentiment for the coming year is sufficiently optimistic. Saudi Arabia's construction market is expected to take the greatest share (over SAR 300 billion) in the National Commercial Bank's (NCB) contracts for next year. Saudi Arabia is also investing US$400 billion in the five years to 2013 to enhance the infrastructure in the country, to diversify the economy and provide jobs for the growing local population of 18 million.
Current offers from Saudi Arabia's commercial producers for 2"-8" ERW pipes grade A, B as per ASTM A53 are being given to the domestic market at unchanged levels - $880-920/mt ex-works (here and below on actual weight basis).
Quality Saudi Arabian manufacturers, approved by state-owned national oil company Saudi Aramco, are still offering 6"-16" welded steel pipes grade B as per API 5L with plain ends at previous prices, i.e., at around $900-950/mt ex-works. However, pipe makers are flexible in giving discounts and prices can be lowered to $880-920/mt ex-works to secure some orders.
Export quotations of 6"-16" welded steel pipes grade B made to API 5L from quality producers are at $950-1,000/mt FOB.
Import offers of Chinese seamless pipes 2"-6" grade B made to ASTM A106/API 5L are being given to the local Saudi market at $800-850/mt C&F, compared to $780-830/mt C&F one month ago.