The Saudi Arabian seamless pipe market is quiet due to the slowdown in business activity with the start of Ramadan and also due to the summer season and the sufficiency of inventories. However, seamless pipe suppliers from China and Japan have increased their offers for the Saudi market by $10-50/mt over the past month, citing increased raw material quotations. At the same time, import offers of seamless pipes from Ukraine and South Africa have remained unchanged. Market players predict buying activity in the Saudi seamless pipe market will recover after Ramadan, i.e., towards the middle of August.
Most offers of Chinese seamless pipes of 2"-6" grade B made to ASTM are being given to the Saudi Arabian market at $760-840/mt CFR, while quotations of seamless pipes from larger Chinese mills are at $930-970/mt CFR.
Quotations of Ukrainian seamless pipes (Interpipe) of 2"-10" grade B made to ASTM A106 to Saudi Arabia are at $1,090-1,130/mt CFR, while offers of seamless pipes as per API 5L are at $1,140-1,180/mt CFR.
South African seamless pipes (ArcelorMittal), 2"-6" grade B made to ASTM A106, are quoted at around $1,050-1,080/mt CFR Saudi Arabia.
Quotations from Japan (NSSMC) for seamless pipes of 2"-6" grade B made to ASTM A106/API 5L are at about $1,400-1,450/mt CFR Saudi Arabia.